Legends Resort & Casino Arkansas Partners with Arkansas Foodbank to Provide Meals in Pope County
Russellville, Ark. [February 18, 2021] —Arkansas Foodbank and Legends Resort & Casino are partnering to provide more than 17,500 meals to Pope County residents facing hunger.
“As a proud member of the community, we are consistently impressed by the many acts of kindness and generosity that is commonplace throughout Pope County, especially within great local organizations such as the Arkansas Foodbank and its partnering agencies,” said Chuck Garrett, CEO of Cherokee Nation Businesses. “Food security programs provide an invaluable resource for our most vulnerable community members. We are honored to help support these efforts and to ensure individuals and their families are getting the nutrition they need.”
Through a network of partner agencies across its 33-county service area, Arkansas Foodbank provides access to nutritious, healthy food for Arkansans experiencing hunger. This gift provided by Legends Resort & Casino will provide additional resources to seven local Pope County agencies that receive food from Arkansas Foodbank.
The local agencies to receive equal portions of this gift include:
- First United Methodist Church – Russellville
- Hector Cumberland Presbyterian – Hector School
- Zion Lutheran Church
- Salvation Army, Russellville
- River Valley Food 4 Kids
- Arkansas Tech University
- Union Grove Free Will Baptist Church
“Arkansas Foodbank is grateful for community partners like Legends Resort & Casino,” said Rhonda Sanders, Arkansas Foodbank CEO. “Their generosity is helping us make sure families have enough food to eat so they can live healthy, hopeful lives.”
“Thank you to Legends Resort and Casino for their recent donation to the Arkansas Foodbank,” said Terri Kulbeth of First United Methodist Church of Russellville. “The gift helps us to continue our necessary food distributions for our Pope and Yell county patrons during the COVID-19 pandemic.”
According to Feeding America, 16.8% of Pope County residents are considered food-insecure. Because of challenges created by the coronavirus pandemic in 2020, Feeding America projects that number will rise to 19.8%. Food-insecurity describes a household’s inability to provide enough food for every person to live an active, healthy life. Food insecurity is one way the Foodbank measures and assesses the risk of hunger in our communities.
For more information about Arkansas Foodbank and its partner agencies, visit arkansasfoodbank.org/who-we-serve.
About Arkansas Foodbank
Arkansas Foodbank, the largest hunger relief organization in Arkansas, is a member of Feeding America and the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance. The Foodbank offers innovative programming focused on serving hungry Arkansans with more healthy and nutritious food. Programs like Food For Kids, Food For Families, and Food For Seniors provide food and other resources for 419 food pantries, soup kitchens, schools, colleges, shelters, senior centers, and other agencies that provide aid directly to hungry Arkansans. For information on how you can fight hunger, visit arkansasfoodbank.org
About Cherokee Nation Businesses, operator of Legends Resort & Casino Arkansas
Legends Resort & Casino is operated by Cherokee Nation Businesses, who employ more than 7,000 people in 47 states, 25 countries and two U.S. territories. CNB’s gaming and hospitality portfolio, Cherokee Nation Entertainment, manages 10 casinos, a horse racing track, two dozen restaurants, multiple entertainment venues, retail shops, fuel/convenience stores, golf courses, tourist welcome centers, museums, hotels and an RV campground. With 30 years of experience in the gaming and hospitality industry, CNB leads the Oklahoma gaming market. The company was the first to open a resort-style casino hotel destination in the state and the first to open a Las-Vegas style concert venue. CNB prides itself on being the employer of choice and contributes significantly to Cherokee Nation’s $2.16 billion economic impact on northeast Oklahoma. For more information on CNB’s other gaming and resort properties, visit cherokeecasino.com.