Kentucky Harvest Challenges Local Leaders to Complete Food Rescues During Hunger Action Month

Press Release: Kentucky Harvest

Harvey’s Hero Challenge sends familiar faces on food rescues and invites the community to join

Throughout September, Kentucky Harvest, a food rescue nonprofit serving the Greater Louisville area, is challenging local community leaders and personalities to hit the road with Harvey, the organization’s chipmunk mascot, to rescue surplus food and help feed neighbors as part of Harvey’s Hero Challenge: Every Rescue Needs a Hero. The community is invited to join the challenge and complete food rescues alongside them.

Launched in recognition of Hunger Action Month, the campaign invites participants to complete a real food rescue using the Kentucky Harvest app. Through the app, participants can select an available rescue and receive the details for picking up surplus food from a local donor and delivering it to one of Kentucky Harvest’s nonprofit partners. Along the way, they’ll take Harvey along for the experience, document their rescue on social media and challenge the next Hero to keep the campaign going.

“Harvey’s Hero Challenge shows that you don’t need hours of free time to make a difference. A food rescue can take as little as 45 minutes,” said Heather Stewart, Executive Director of Kentucky Harvest. “We’re grateful to our community Heroes taking part in this challenge and to the food donors who make these rescues possible. We hope this campaign inspires more people to see how easy it is to get involved and help us rescue more food, reduce more waste, and feed more neighbors.”

The challenge will bring together familiar faces from across Louisville’s sports, media, food, and business communities, including University of Louisville women’s basketball head coach Jeff Walz; Louisville City FC star Sean Totsch; Racing Louisville FC star Jordyn Bloomer; WHAS radio personality Terry Meiners; Louisville Business First President and Publisher Lisa Benson; WAVE’s Dawne Gee and Marresa Burke; Jessica Damico of Eat Drink Cheers; Rosa Hart, host of The Lou Review Podcast and local food and travel personality; Allen Hubbard, executive chef of Martini Italian Bistro; and Chef Jake Brockman of Mise En Place Catering. Additional local personalities and community leaders are expected to join the challenge throughout September.

The campaign highlights two challenges Kentucky Harvest works to address: food insecurity and food waste. One in five children in Kentucky Harvest’s immediate region struggles with food insecurity, while food waste is estimated to make up roughly 30% of municipal solid waste sent to landfills locally. Kentucky Harvest works to help bridge the gap between food waste and hunger by rescuing surplus food from local donors and getting it to nonprofit partners serving people facing hunger.

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Community members are encouraged to join Harvey’s Hero Challenge. To participate:

1. Download the Kentucky Harvest app and sign up.

2. Choose a food rescue that fits your schedule.

3. Bring Harvey along for the journey. 

4. Rescue surplus food by picking it up from a local donor and delivering it to a nonprofit partner. A rescue can take as little as 45 minutes. 

5. Post your experience on Instagram or Facebook, tag Kentucky Harvest, and challenge someone else. 

To join the effort, download the Kentucky Harvest app and learn more about Harvey’s Hero Challenge: Every Rescue Needs a Hero at https://kyharvest.org/hero/. 

Follow Harvey’s journey all September long on Kentucky Harvest’s Instagram (@KentuckyHarvest) and Facebook (@KYHarvest).

About Kentucky Harvest

Founded in 1987, Kentucky Harvest is a Louisville-based nonprofit dedicated to ending local hunger by rescuing excess food that would otherwise go to waste and delivering it to people in need. Through partnerships with hundreds of food donors, nonprofit agencies, and volunteers, Kentucky Harvest ensures good food feeds people, not landfills. Learn more at www.kyharvest.org.