During the month of April, Sodexo’s 380,000 employees across the globe were asked to join forces by teaming up to raise money, donate time, and provide meals to people in and around their local communities. This global initiative helps the one billion people who suffer from hunger and malnutrition around the world.

Sodexo employees repacking food items at Food Lifeline’s Shoreline Repack Center in Washington.

The work of volunteers impacts everyone’s lives by building stronger communities through volunteerism. This Sodexo event launched in the United States fourteen years ago and evolved into a global effort in 2009. Servathon, the largest employee fundraiser for the Sodexo Foundation (Sodexo’s charitable organization), encourages Sodexo employees to come together for the greater good of the community to provide a better way of life for those in need.

Sodexo employees in Illinois label and box 564,000 mini-marshmallows for distribution.

Relying on volunteers for such events was at the heart of recent programs in Washington state and the Chicago area, where Sodexo employees teamed up to hold special volunteer events at Food Lifeline's Shoreline Repack Center in Washington and the Northern Illinois Food Bank in the Chicago area. On April 13th, over 50 employees from Sodexo attended an event to repack food into smaller packages for distribution to Food Lifeline's network of nearly 300 local food banks, meal programs and shelters throughout western Washington state. According to Linda Nageotte, the President and CEO of Food Lifeline, the donation will provide more than 50,000 meals for hungry people in Washington state in the presence of these tough economic times. Last year, Food Lifeline, a hunger-relief organization that serves western Washington state, delivered 19 million meals to hungry people throughout its network. On April 17th, Sodexo employees from the Chicago area, along with their friends and families, volunteered their time to sort, label and pack food items for the Northern Illinois Food Bank, an organization that warehouses and distributes food donations to various food agencies throughout Illinois. Sodexo employees in the Chicago area also raised money to support Servathon by hosting a raffle and silent auction.