ST. LOUIS (Nov. 23, 2020) – Today, Ameren is announcing that as part of its sponsorship of KMOV-TV's broadcast of the Ameren Thanksgiving Day Celebration at 10 a.m. on Thursday, Nov. 26, the company will match community donations up to $100,000 to support the St. Louis Area Foodbank's mission to build stronger communities by empowering people with food and hope.
The St. Louis Area Foodbank is the region’s largest food distribution nonprofit dedicated to feeding people dealing with hunger. The organization's efforts assist communities across 26 counties in eastern Missouri and southwestern Illinois, through a robust partner network that includes more than 600 hunger-relief organizations such as soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters, and residential programs. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, there were more 368,000 people in the bi-state region facing food insecurity. Unfortunately, due to job losses, furloughs, and kids being at home for extended periods of time, a recent study projects the number of food-insecure individuals in the region has grown by 43 percent, including a 65 percent growth for children and teens. That means that more than half a million people will experience food insecurity in 2020.
"For generations, the Ameren Thanksgiving Day Parade has provided special holiday memories, and even though we are not able to gather in person this year, we hope you will tune in to the Ameren Thanksgiving Day Celebration broadcast to enjoy great family entertainment," said Warner Baxter, chairman, president and chief executive officer of Ameren Corporation. "Please also join us in supporting the St. Louis Area Foodbank, because Ameren will be matching up to $100,000 of contributions to help those in need during this very difficult year and beyond."
Christmas in St. Louis and Ameren have chosen to honor the St. Louis Area Foodbank as this year's grand marshal of the Ameren Thanksgiving Day Celebration, as well as offer an opportunity for people to easily donate to the organization in support of their critical mission to fight hunger throughout the region.
Those interested in giving are encouraged to visit www.stlfoodbank.org/food4all or text FOOD4ALL to 76278 to make a donation.
"During these unprecedented times, there is an ever-increasing demand for food assistance to help individuals and families impacted by COVID-19," said Meredith Knopp, president and chief executive officer of the St. Louis Area Foodbank. "People that have never needed our services before are now turning to our network of community partners to help put food on the table. We want to thank everyone for their generosity throughout this pandemic, helping us meet the growing challenge of feeding so many of our neighbors in need."
About Ameren Corporation
St. Louis-based Ameren Corporation powers the quality of life for 2.4 million electric customers and more than 900,000 natural gas customers in a 64,000-square-mile area through its Ameren Missouri and Ameren Illinois rate-regulated utility subsidiaries.
Ameren Illinois provides electric transmission and distribution service and natural gas distribution service. Ameren Missouri provides electric service generation, transmission and distribution services, as well as natural gas distribution service. Ameren Transmission Company of Illinois develops, owns and operates rate-regulated electric transmission projects. For more information, visit Ameren.com, or follow us on Twitter at @AmerenCorp, Facebook.com/AmerenCorp, or LinkedIn.com/company/Ameren.
About the St. Louis Area Foodbank
The St. Louis Area Foodbank began its service to the community in 1975. Since that time, the organization has grown to become the bi-state region’s largest nonprofit 501c3 food distribution center dedicated to feeding individuals in need. Through a robust network of community partners and programs throughout 26 counties in Missouri and Illinois, the Foodbank helps provide 37 million meals annually. More than 392,000 people in the bi-state region rely on the Foodbank for assistance each year. For 45 years, the St. Louis Area Foodbank has been there for people dealing with crisis, be it a natural disaster, a global pandemic, or the everyday crisis of hunger. For more information on Foodbank’s COVID-19 relief and response efforts and how people can access resources near them, call (314) 292-6262 or visit https://STLFoodbank.org/covid19.
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Contact
Ameren Communications
314.554.2182
missouricommunications@ameren.com