LIBERTY BANK, ROTARY CLUBS RAISE RECORD $182,000 TO HELP FILL THANKSGIVING FOOD BASKETS

CLINTON, CT — With almost 225,000 households in Connecticut eligible for federal food stamps, many families will struggle to find the money to buy turkey and all the fixings for Thanksgiving this year.  But thanks to the 2013 Liberty Bank/Rotary Club Thanksgiving Dinner Drive, families living in Liberty Bank’s service area will benefit from $182,026 raised to supply that food—a record for the ten-year-old partnership between the bank and 29 local Rotary Clubs. 

The Clinton Rotary Club and the Liberty Bank branch in Clinton raised $5,428.98, and received matching funds of $1,357.25, for a total of $6,786.23.  The funds were donated to the Clinton Food Pantry, which provides food for Thanksgiving meals.

Rotary Clubs in 29 towns teamed up with the 49 Liberty Bank offices to raise $145,605 during the weeks after Columbus Day.  At the end of the drive, the Liberty Bank Foundation added 25 cents for each dollar raised, totaling $36,421.  Rotarians either use the funds to purchase and deliver Thanksgiving food to needy families, or donate the money to a local nonprofit organization that provides Thanksgiving baskets.  All donations are used to provide food in the communities where they were given. 

 “We keep hearing about the economic recovery, but our food pantries are seeing more people than ever turning to them for help,” said Sue Murphy, executive director of the Liberty Bank Foundation and a member of the Middletown Rotary Club.  “The partnership between Liberty Bank, our foundation, and the 29 Rotary Clubs is a powerful demonstration of the great things that can be accomplished when people come together for the benefit of their communities.  It shows that people who care really can make a difference.”

Since it began in 2004, the Liberty Bank/Rotary Club Thanksgiving Dinner Drive has raised over $938,000 to supply holiday meals to residents of the towns served by the bank.  Last year’s drive raised over $146,000, including $25,000 in matching funds from the Liberty Bank Foundation. 

            The following Rotary Clubs participated in the 2013 Liberty Bank/Rotary Club Thanksgiving Dinner Drive:  Bristol, Cheshire, Chester, Clinton, Colchester, Deep River, East Haddam, East Hampton, Glastonbury, Groton/Ledyard, Kensington/Berlin, Madison, Meriden, Middletown, Mystic, New Britain, New London, Newington, Niantic, North Haven, Norwich, Old Saybrook, Plainville, Stonington, Wallingford, Waterford, West Hartford, Wethersfield/Rocky Hill, and Willimantic.  Each Liberty Bank office collected contributions for its local Rotary, so the funds remain in the communities where they were donated.  Some Rotaries collected and distributed funds for nearby towns as well as their own, so that every town with a Liberty Bank office was included.  (Visit www.liberty-bank.com/locations  for a list of Liberty Bank offices.)

Rotary is a global network of more than 1.2 million volunteer leaders who dedicate their time and talent to tackle the world’s most pressing humanitarian challenges.  There are 34,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and geographical areas. Clubs are nonpolitical, nonreligious, and open to all cultures, races, and creeds. Their work impacts lives at both the local and international levels, from helping families in need in their own communities to working toward a polio-free world.  As signified by the motto “Service Above Self,” Rotary’s main objective is service — in the community, in the workplace, and throughout the world.

Since its inception in 1997, the Liberty Bank Foundation has awarded almost $8 million in grants to nonprofit organizations within Liberty Bank’s market area.  The foundation seeks to improve the quality of life for people of low or moderate income by investing in three areas:  education to promote economic success for children and families; affordable housing; and nonprofit capacity building.  Along with its grantmaking, the foundation strives to foster the convening and collaboration of nonprofits, funders, business, and government to address community issues. 

Established in 1825, Liberty Bank is Connecticut’s oldest mutual bank, with more than $3.5 billion in assets and 49 banking offices throughout the central, eastern, and shoreline areas of the state.  As a full-service financial institution, Liberty offers consumer and commercial banking, home mortgages, insurance, and investment services.  Rated outstanding by federal regulators on its community reinvestment efforts, Liberty maintains a longstanding commitment to superior personal service and unparalleled community involvement.