Members of the Justices Ray L. Brock Jr.-Robert E. Cooper American Inn of Court in May conducted a joint meeting of its members with Chattanooga Area Food Bank staff and Chattanooga area court reporters.
The event, dubbed “Fill The Food Bank,” took place at the Food Bank’s Navarre Teaching Garden and Pavilion and was followed by a tour of the organization’s operations facility and warehouse.
Brock-Cooper Inn of Court members donated $6,075 and contributed 500 pounds of food by placing collection barrels and QR scan codes throughout several members’ law offices.
Attorneys and staff at those firms collected donations the week prior to the joint meeting.
The Inn’s contributions will allow the Food Bank to provide about 24,700 meals to families throughout its 20-county service territory.
The Inn had three goals for the event, says David Higney, special projects co-chair.
“First, we wanted to battle food insecurity by providing contributions to the Emergency Meal Box program so children in need and their families would not go hungry while school is out.
“We also wanted to collect donations in honor of Chattanooga-area courthouse staff, who worked tirelessly throughout the pandemic to allow lawyers and court reporters to provide necessary client services, and to educate Inn members and court reporters about volunteer opportunities available at the Food Bank.”
Jennifer Fritts, the Food Bank’s director of grants and communications, spoke to the participants about the organization’s mission and operations, provided a history of the Food Bank since its inception in 1972, and educated attendees about the ways in which attorneys and their staff members can assist the organization.
Food Bank staff then gave the attendees a walking tour of its teaching garden and 40,000 square foot warehouse, where Shelley Armstrong, the organization’s director of events and major gifts, explained how the Food Bank distributes 1.8 million pounds of food each month throughout its service area, which encompasses over 7,000 square miles.
Higney told separate stories of a law firm staff member and a local food vendor who benefitted from the efforts of courthouse staff, judges, attorneys and court reporters during the pandemic.
For additional information about the Brock-Cooper American Inn of Court, contact incoming-president Katherine Lentz at 423 756-8400 or klentz@gkhpc.com.
Source: Brock-Cooper American Inn of Court