Simmons Law Firm Delivers Tons of Food To Five Madison County Pantries

EAST ALTON, Ill. – The Simmons Law Firm announced today that more than 11.5 tons of food was delivered earlier this week to five Madison County charities as a result of the Fourth Annual Simmons Employee Foundation Food Drive.

“Giving back to our community is an important part of the Simmons Employee Foundation’s mission and this year, we were proud to help stock area pantries in time for the holiday season,” said David Bamper, president of the foundation.

Monday morning, firm employees sorted and loaded the food onto two trucks that made deliveries to the Collinsville Ministerial Association, the Community Hope Center in Cottage Hills, the Crisis Food Center in Alton, the Alton Salvation Army and the Granite City Salvation Army.

Employees from RCS Construction and Lake Side Roofing of Collinsville, the drive’s corporate sponsors, donated the trucks, gas and additional man power needed to help deliver the food.

“We couldn’t have done it without the employees, their friends and families who donated the items and the local businesses who ensured the food arrived where it was supposed to be,” Bamper said.

The Simmons food drive lasted Sept. 27 to Nov. 10. The firm’s roughly 300 employees, their friends and families collected exactly 26,695 pounds of food between the firm’s five buildings in the Alton, East Alton and Bethalto area.

The Collinsville Ministerial Association’s Helping Hands Food Pantry, 201 East Church St. in Collinsville, was one of the five pantries that received food Monday. It helps an average of 263 families a month, and had been nearly empty as most holiday drives have not started yet, said Mike Watkins, the pantry’s Director of Ministry.

“We really appreciate it, we can breathe easier now,” Watkins said about the Monday delivery. “There for awhile, it was day by day whether or not we were going to have enough food.”

He said the pantry now has enough food to last it through Thanksgiving when it will begin receiving donations from area holiday charity drives.

“In past years, we didn’t deliver food until after Thanksgiving, but this year we moved up the delivery date because we wanted to make sure the pantries had enough food to get them to the holiday season,” said Lori Smith, the director of the Simmons Employee Foundation.

About Simmons Employee Foundation:

In late 2004, the employees of the Simmons Law Firm came together to create a single, streamlined way for them to give back to the communities they are so proud to call home.  As a result of their creativity and heartfelt commitment, the Simmons Employee Foundation (SEF), has provided nearly $1 million of financial support and countless volunteer hours to local charitable organizations.