Eating to end hunger? You bet!

Employees from Emeryville based company Art.com, Inc. joined together, family-style to participate in a good old fashioned "Spaghetti Feed" to benefit the Alameda County Community Food Bank. Employees purchased tickets and feasted on delicious pasta dishes from California Pizza Kitchen. The Art.com folks raised close to $1,100 and the company matched with an additional donation bringing the grand total to $1,500.

Thanks to Art.com and their staff!

Bay Area Hunger Walk: April 28 and 29

This spring, communities from Sonoma to the South Bay will come together to fight hunger at home and around the world in the Bay Area Hunger Walk. Caring people across the Bay Area will show the world that fighting hunger is more than a catch phrase. It's a call to act, a call to Walk.

Proceeds benefit the Alameda County Community Food Bank and other hunger-fighting charities. For details, visit BayAreaHungerWalk.org.

A neighborly act of generosity

Shaunise Day went to bed hungry one night, not because she didn't have food, but because she was too tired to get up and fix herself something. (Sound familiar?) But, that night she thought about others who go to bed hungry because they don't have a choice. She became a catalyst at her company, Rainin Instrument LLC, which is located just down the road at 7500 Edgewater Drive.

In early November, she walked into the food bank to talk with someone about food drives. A fellow employee offered to pick up four barrels, saving the Food Bank fuel and drivers' time.

And Shaunise wanted to do more. The Food Bank connected her to a local charter school to "adopt a family." The team at Rainin Instrument distributed gift cards for holiday meals and toys for many children at the school.

McGuire Real Estate goes beyond cans

Thanks to McGuire Real Estate for holding their annual Holiday Food and Fund Drive this year -- and going the extra mile! With postcards and local newspaper ads, they've shared news of the drive far and wide, inspiring others as well. One family held a "party with a purpose" and shared the donations with the Food Bank because of McGuire's example. The team also went door-to-door to collect non-perishable items.

"Food is a basic human need, so we are happy to participate," said sales manager Sherri Pope. "Our drive will go on til Jan. 5," because hunger doesn't stop after the holidays.

Learn more at McGuire Real Estate's website.

Can a cookie make a difference?

Three years ago, Ellie Mae employees in Pleasanton stumbled on a simple yet effective way to raise money for the Food Bank: a good, old-fashioned bake sale. The first year, they raised $2,400 from employees baking lemon bars, chocolate chip cookies and fudge brownies. In 2010, they expanded the sale to include healthier items like fresh backyard produce and home-cooked tamales. This year, they went even further, with raffles, original art and photography and more. Each year, Ellie Mae has matched their employees' contributions, adding up to thousands of meals for families in need.

Thanks to Ellie Mae, the EllieCares Team, and their employees for making a difference for their neighbors!

Italy Design's Thanksgiving sale

Until Jan. 2, Italy Design will be donating 10% of their profits to the Food Bank! To make room for new shipments after the holidays, they will be offering savings on overstocks, discontinued items, floor samples and scratched and dented items.

Learn more at Italy Design's website.

Rotarians and friends holiday sort

Rotary International members in Alameda County believe that with a commitment to "Service Above Self," we can change the world. Roatarians and friends volunteered at the Food Bank on Nov. 29 for an after-hours party and food sorting shift. In place of their regular meeting, they sorted fresh produce and food-drive donations.

You can bring your community group to the Food Bank! Find out more on our Volunteer page.

Fight Hunger, Avoid Back Pain

Saving the world from back pain one person at a time: Relax The Back offers you ergonomic furniture including mattresses, chairs, recliners and more to help relieve back pain.

Help us fight hunger and let us help you fight back pain. Bring 15 non-perishable food items to Relax The Back Pleasanton or Fremont location and receive 15% off your entire purchase. Some restrictions may apply.

Cleaning for a Cause

If it turns out that those candlesticks you received for your wedding years ago aren't going to finance a vacation after all, that's no reason to stick them back in a box!

Donate your estate-quality items to the Food Bank's ongoing account at Michaan's Auctions. Michaan's will sell the items at their monthly auction and 95% of the hammer price will go to the Food Bank. Think of it as recycling to the highest bidder!

Contact Michaan's at (510) 740-0220 or visit michaans.com for more information.

Yes They Can!

For Piedmont Middle School's leadership class, the annual Food and Fund drive is a chance to teach their classmates the power of multiplication.

More than 800 students multiplied by handfuls of non-perishable food has equaled a ton of food for the past three years. Literally. With military-grade organization and the willingness to do whatever it takes to rally the troops -- like dressing up as a jar of peanut butter -- the class has surpassed its goal each year.

Students Becca, Robbie and Amy donned the costumes at lunchtime, and spent the rest of the day fielding questions from curious classmates.

Chuck in a can, check off your car

Allsmogs Test Only Center will shave $5 off the top of your smog check if you chuck in a canned-food donation at their Dublin location. Allsmogs is also a year-round food collection site for us, with more than 3,000 pounds of food collected in two years!

Will Read for Food

The Mom Food Project is a blog for foodies to reconnect with their mommies. They're sharing their recipes for Aunt Sandy's blintzes, mom's pork chops -- and a stellar blog. When you buy a copy of the e-book "31 Days to Build a Better Blog," they'll donate $2 to the Food Bank! You can also improve your own culinary repertoire with cookbooks by Madhur Jaffrey and Dorie Greenspan. Your mom would approve.

See The Mom Food Blog for home-cooked food with love.

Paper = Food

Each time you buy a case of GSB 30% or 100% post-consumer recycled paper, Give Something Back and Boise Inc. donate $1 to select California community food banks – including ours. It’s a program that has already provided more than $15,000 in Alameda County – enough to distribute 45,000 meals.

Hunger Beat Down

Sure, you can see videotape and interviews of Alameda County’s own All Pro Wrestling on Channel 50 (Digital Channel 199) every Saturday morning, but it’s more fun to see the cheap shots and Flair Flips ringside. Admission is three cans of non-perishable food, all of it donated to the Food Bank. That beats getting cracked in the head by a chair every time.
See APW’s website for upcoming dates.

Putting Hunger in Park

Flying out of the Oakland Airport? Park your car at one of three FastTrack lots and use this coupon to receive a 15% discount – the Food Bank receives 5% of your discounted total. For more discounts, sign up for a free Premier Parker account.

A Campaign of Colors

Donate three cans of food to Brushstrokes Studio in Berkeley and get three free hours of studio time on Mondays and Tuesdays from 5-8 p.m.

They Hum, He Plays, We Win

Brian Wong is a 15-year-old high school junior who entertains seniors in his hometown of Alameda with a startling array of songs from the past eight decades. If you can hum it, he can play it. Brian has parlayed donations for his unique talent into more than $10,000 for the Alameda County Community Food Bank. He was one of two "Hope Not Hunger" honorees at the Food Bank's Empty Bowls fundraiser over the summer. Learn more.

See TV coverage on CBS5