With food banks across the country experiencing increased demand, Tim Sweigart and his employees with Kansas Electric Inc. saw an opportunity to help in a big way.The company partnered with Iowa-based The Outreach Program to create a community-service initiative with the goal of providing half a million meals – yes, 500,000 – for food banks to disperse to those in need. That’s a lofty goal in and of itself, but Kansas Electric targeted hitting that benchmark with a one-week-long packaging blitz from November 7 to 14. The company is relying on its employees and hundreds of volunteers to hit that mark.

“Kansas Electric is excited to partner with The Outreach Program for this opportunity to bring hope to those in need,” Sweigart said in a writing publicizing the food-packaging drive. “This is a great opportunity to give back to our community.”

Sweigart, who is the CEO of Kansas Electric, also viewed this as an opportunity to keep his employees busy during an otherwise slow time for the company. Meanwhile, Syndeo saw this as a chance to for its employees to give back while helping a human resources client meet its goal. Nine Syndeo employees helped package more than 200 meals during a two-hour shift on November 11. Each packaged meal can feed six people.

“Syndeo’s core values include taking care of each other. This applies not just to taking care of our internal staff, but also taking care of our communities," says Connor Cross, Syndeo's Director of Human Resources. "Syndeo always looks for ways to give back and we are privileged to get to support families in need alongside one of our valued clients.”

Volunteers were required to wear face masks amid heightened concerns about the spread of Covid-19. Gloves, hairnets and plastic aprons also were required as added measures for safe food handling.Kansas Electric’s food-packaging drive had yielded more than 190,000 meals as of mid-afternoon November 11.However, Kansas Electric still needs help during the last few days of the event. Visit http://www.kansaselectric.com/meals to sign up to volunteer. The meal-packing drive is set to end November 14.Help end hunger and enrich lives.About us: As the Heartland’s leading employer services company, Syndeo partners with local business owners to help them minimize risk, improve efficiency and maximize profitability allowing them the freedom to focus on growth and fulfilling their mission. Syndeo fulfills its mission by taking on all of the HR responsibilities for our clients’ workforce, including employee relations, benefits, risk management and payroll.