POSTED ON 04.16.2014 11:38 A.M.
SOURCE: ANNE PAZIER FOR SANTA BARBARA GIFT BASKETS
Santa Barbara Gift Baskets will present a check for more than $2,000 to the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County on Thursday at the Foodbank’s Multi Chamber Mega Mixer.
The donation stems from a promotion Santa Barbara Gift Baskets launched in December, featuring a gift basket filled with local gourmet foods.
Twenty five dollars from the sale of each $125 gift basket was collected for donation to the Foodbank to use toward its mission to eliminate hunger by providing food, education and other resources to a network of hunger-relief charities in Santa Barbara County.
Each Foodbank Holiday Gift Basket included a card that informed the recipient that their gift consisted of not only the delicious treats nestled inside, but also a donation of $25 to the Foodbank.
According to the Foodbank, for every $1 it receives as a donation, it is able to purchase $17 worth of food. That translates to $425 worth of food per gift basket purchased, and more than $35,000 for the entire donation.
The Foodbank was not the only organization benefiting from the sale of the basket. Fourteen local businesses were represented among the gourmet contents. Every dollar spent on the Foodbank Holiday Gift Basket stayed right here in Santa Barbara County, supporting the local economy as well as its most needy residents.
Several local businesses chose to send the Foodbank Holiday Gift Basket as their client appreciation gift this year, including Heritage Oaks Bank, Best Western of Carpinteria, and Penfield & Smith Engineers.
“We chose the Foodbank Holiday Gift Basket this year to share a taste of the wonderful local items with some of our clients, both near and far, as well as to do something good for our community,” said Julie Miller of Penfield & Smith. “Supporting local business and giving back is integral to building and maintaining great communities like Santa Barbara. We are proud to have been a part of it.”
The Foodbank Multi Chamber Mega Mixer will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Thursday at the Foodbank warehouse at 4554 Hollister Ave. Members and guests of the following Chambers of Commerce will participate in this free networking event: Santa Barbara Region, Goleta Valley, Carpinteria, Buellton, Solvang, Lompoc, Santa Maria, San Luis Obispo and the Santa Barbara Hispanic Chamber.
Some of the local food purveyors included Santa Barbara Pistachios, Santa Barbara Biscotti, La Tolteca Tortilla Factory, Santa Barbara Olive Co., Pacific Pickle Works, Shalhoob Meat Co., Jessica Foster Chocolates, Goodland Chai, Ocean Ranch Organics, Burst Marshmallows, San Marcos Farms, Caribbean Coffee, the Santa Barbara Bar and Santa Barbara Gourmet Popcorn. The basket also included a copy of Edible Santa Barbara Magazine.
— Anne Pazier represents Santa Barbara Gift Baskets.
