Louisiana Blue, Healthy Blue and Entergy Louisiana Volunteers Will Pack 200,000 Meals for Louisiana Families
Eight events taking place statewide support Million Meals for MLK campaign

BATON ROUGE, La. – Employee volunteers from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, Healthy Blue and Entergy Louisiana will pack 200,000 meals for Louisiana families facing food insecurity. Employees and their families will volunteer at eight sponsored events around the state during the week of Martin Luther King Jr. Day (Jan. 20), assembling “oh seaux good” red beans and rice meal kits. 

The 200,000 meals sponsored by these three organizations are part of Volunteer Louisiana’s and Feeding Louisiana’s Million Meals for MLK campaign. The initiative launched last fall and aims to collect 1 million meals for Louisiana food banks by the end of January through donations, sponsorships and community service. Learn more about the campaign in this video (6:00).

“For the past three years, we’ve proudly joined Healthy Blue and Entergy Louisiana in sponsoring meals for families in need while creating volunteer opportunities for our employees around Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a National Day of Service,” said Michael Tipton, Louisiana Blue Foundation president and head of Community Relations. “This year, we’re excited to increase the impact of these events by partnering with Volunteer Louisiana and Feeding Louisiana in the Million Meals for MLK campaign. We hope other Louisianians, including businesses, churches and community groups, will join us in the fight to end hunger in our home state.” 

According to Feeding Louisiana, the start of the year is a critical time to restock food banks because many of them are low on supplies after the holiday season. Volunteer events like these are a great way to replenish food for the winter months while giving Louisianians an opportunity to serve their communities.  

Entergy Louisiana and Louisiana Blue signed on as the first corporate sponsors of the Million Meals for MLK campaign in honor of their recognition as Louisiana businesses included among The Civic 50. This is an annual designation from the Points of Light Foundation of the 50 most community-minded companies in America. Louisiana Blue has been recognized for the past six years, and Entergy has been recognized for the past nine years. 

Food-Packing Events Schedule 
Louisiana Blue, Entergy Louisiana and Healthy Blue volunteer pack parties will take place in each region of the state. Media are invited to attend the pack parties during the times listed, film video or take photos, and interview representatives of Louisiana Blue, Entergy Louisiana and the participating food bank and nonprofit organizations. Some of these events have been rescheduled from the original date because of winter weather. Rescheduled dates are noted below. 

While these events are for Louisiana Blue, Entergy Louisiana and Healthy Blue employees, food banks and other organizations addressing hunger will host volunteer and donation events throughout January for the Million Meals for MLK campaign. Visit MillionMealsforMLK.org to find events near you and see how you can share, serve and support to help reach the 1 million meals goal. 

Monday, Jan. 20 – Baton Rouge 
Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank
10600 South Choctaw Dr. Baton Rouge, LA 70815
10 a.m. – noon

RESCHEDULED: Tuesday, Jan. 28 – Alexandria 
Food Bank of Central Louisiana
3223 Baldwin Ave. Alexandria, LA 71301
10 a.m. – noon 

RESCHEDULED: Tuesday, Jan. 28 – New Orleans 
Second Harvest Food Bank
700 Edwards Ave. New Orleans, LA 70123
10 a.m. – noon 

RESCHEDULED: Tuesday, Jan. 28 – Thibodaux 
Good Samaritan Food Bank - Thibodaux
100 Burch St. Thibodaux, LA 70301
2:30-4:30 p.m. 

RESCHEDULED: Wednesday, Jan. 29 – Lafayette 
Second Harvest Food Bank
215 E. Pinhook Road Lafayette, LA 70501
10 a.m. – noon 

RESCHEDULED: Wednesday, Jan. 29 – Monroe 
Monroe Convention Center – Bayou Room (for Food Bank of Northeast Louisiana)
401 Lea Joyner Expressway Monroe, LA 71201
10 a.m.–noon 

Thursday, Jan. 23 – Lake Charles 
Second Harvest Food Bank
2309 Hwy. 397 Lake Charles, LA 70615
10 a.m. – noon

Thursday, Jan. 23 – Shreveport 
Bossier Council on Aging
706 Bearkat Dr. Bossier City, LA 71111
10 a.m. – noon 

Follow Louisiana Blue on social media @MyLouisianaBlue to see live photos and posts from the pack parties and updates on progress toward 200,000 meals. 

About Louisiana Blue
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana, or Louisiana Blue, is committed to our mission to improve the health and lives of Louisianians. Founded in New Orleans in 1934, we are a tax-paying not-for-profit health insurer with offices in every major region to serve our customers. We have been recognized for the past six years as an honoree of The Civic 50, named by Points of Light as one of the 50 most community-minded companies in the United States. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. We invite all Louisianians to visit our website at lablue.com or talk to us on social media @MyLouisianaBlue.

About Healthy Blue
Healthy Blue is a managed healthcare provider that has been serving the state since 2012, and currently serves the state’s Medicaid, Medicaid Expansion and LaCHIP programs. Healthy Blue, a joint venture between Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana and Anthem Partnership Holding Company, LLC (parent company, Anthem, Inc.), recognizes the challenges low-income and underserved individuals face, and tailors its programs such that health plan members are assured care that is not only accessible, but also accountable, comprehensive, integrated and patient-centered. Healthy Blue provides ongoing community relations and outreach to encourage members to become active participants in their healthcare. Also, through health education programs, members are empowered to choose and sustain healthy lifestyles. To learn more about Healthy Blue, visit www.myhealthybluela.com and follow the company on Facebook and Twitter @HealthyBlueLA and LinkedIn @healthy-blue-louisiana.

About Entergy Louisiana
Entergy Louisiana, LLC provides electric service to more than 1 million customers in 58 parishes and natural gas service to more than 94,000 customers in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Entergy Louisiana is a subsidiary of Entergy Corporation (NYSE: ETR), an integrated energy company engaged in electric power production, transmission and retail distribution operations. Entergy delivers electricity to 3 million utility customers in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. Entergy owns and operates one of the cleanest large-scale U.S. power generating fleets with approximately 24,000 megawatts of electric generating capacity, including 5,000 megawatts of nuclear power. Headquartered in New Orleans, Louisiana, Entergy has annual revenues of $10 billion and approximately 12,000 employees.