-- Provides Kaiser Permanente Physicians and Staff Coffee and Pastries in Gratitude for their Dedication --
Sacramento Kings forward Harrison Barnes and his wife, Brittany, are donating $40,000 to fund weekly groceries for vulnerable families and seniors for the next month. The Barnes donation will provide weekly family meals, coordinated in partnership with The Center at Sierra Health Foundation, the Black Child Legacy Campaign (BCLC) and the seven BCLC community partner organizations working to prevent and reduce disproportionate African American child deaths in Sacramento. Food is given to families identified by community organizations across Sacramento County. Each box contains non-perishable foods such as pasta, rice and canned goods as well as fresh fruits, vegetables and meat. Additionally, Barnes and his wife will donate Dutch Bros coffee and pastries to physicians and staff working on the front lines in the Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center’s Intensive Care Unit. These donations are in addition to the more than 1,250 meals donated to families and children in need during the month of April by Barnes and his fellow teammates Bogdan Bogdanovic, De’Aaron Fox, Richaun Holmes and Cory Joseph.
“Food accessibility is a health crisis that has always affected underserved communities. This pandemic has really magnified the issue - so we knew this was an area we wanted to focus our efforts,” Barnes said of he and his wife’s community efforts amidst COVID-19.
“During these uncertain times, we wanted to find a way to serve and be impactful to vulnerable families in our community. My wife and I were privileged to partner with The Center at Sierra Health Foundation and Black Child Legacy Campaign and its trusted partners, who are doing incredible work to ensure families in Sacramento’s most underserved communities have food on the table,” said Barnes. “We’re proud to do a small part in providing more families with food security during these difficult times.”
“The challenges our communities face have been amplified by the health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Sierra Health Foundation and The Center President and CEO Chet P. Hewitt. “It’s more important than ever to support each other and we thank the Barnes family for doing just that with their commitment to this city and its most vulnerable residents.”
“It is so meaningful to our families, our kids and our community to be seen by and have the support of the Barnes family,” said Rose Family Creative Empowerment Center Founder and Director Jackie Rose.
“Huge thank you to Harrison Barnes for his support in ensuring our community has the support needed during these times,” said South Sacramento Christian Center Pastor Les Simmons. “It’s through generosities like yours that we continue to create beloved community.”
These donations are part of the team’s “In This Together” initiative to help support the community during the COVID-19 pandemic. Earlier this month, the Kings announced that the team’s former arena in Natomas will serve as a surge field hospital to provide care for mild to moderate COVID-positive patients. The Sacramento Kings Foundation will donate $250,000 to area community organizations providing food services, essential supplies and other resources and relief to those hardest hit by the crisis. The team will also donate 100,000 medical-grade masks to state and local hospitals and healthcare institutions with a shortage of supplies. Last month, the Kings joined forces with Legends Hospitality to donate nearly 5,000 pounds of prepared and perishable food to the Sacramento Food Bank and the Sacramento County Office of Education to help feed individuals in need and families impacted by school closures.
To learn more about “In This Together” and the team’s efforts to give back, visit Kings.com/Together.