Today, Attorney General Sam Olens was joined at the state Capitol by State Bar of Georgia Young Lawyers Division (YLD) President Sharri Edenfield and Georgia Food Bank Association Executive Director Danah Craft to launch the 4th Annual Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, a statewide food drive competition among Georgia lawyers. The 2015 competition will take place April 20, 2015 – May 1, 2015.

The Georgia Legal Food Frenzy is a partnership between the Georgia Attorney General, the YLD and the Georgia Food Bank Association. Lawyers statewide are challenged to compete outside the courtroom to raise food and funds for Georgia’s eight regional food banks, which serve 156,500 unique clients in Georgia on a weekly basis. All of the food and funds collected are donated to the regional food bank that serves each competitor’s community.

“I am excited to launch the 4th Annual Legal Food Frenzy today,” said Olens. “It has been an honor to join forces with the Young Lawyers Division and the Georgia Food Bank Association to fight hunger in Georgia. Over the past three years, the generosity of Georgia lawyers and legal professionals has made a difference in the lives of less fortunate Georgians and has made our state a better place. The Legal Food Frenzy represents the best of the legal profession.”

In its first three years of competition, the Legal Food Frenzy raised the equivalent of more than 2.5 million pounds of food for Georgians in need. Last year alone, 277 firms and organizations representing over 16,000 members of the legal profession raised the equivalent of 1,140,627 pounds of food, a 36% increase over 2013 results.

Nearly 60% of Georgia’s public school students are eligible for either a free or reduced lunch each day, but fewer than 15% have access to a lunch program during the summer. The competition is timed to help the food banks go into summer strong and well-stocked to meet the increased demand for food.

“The legal community is proud to help provide food to the thousands of Georgians who are in need,” said State Bar of Georgia President Patrise Perkins-Hooker. “We look forward to the State Bar’s fourth year of participation in this worthwhile project and hope to exceed the one million pounds of food that was donated to the food banks last year from lawyers throughout the state. I challenge all of Georgia’s lawyers to get involved and develop new ways to generate donations of food and resources for the 2015 program.”

“The Young Lawyers Division takes great pride in being the community service arm of the State Bar,” said Edenfield. “Nothing embodies the YLD’s commitment to helping others more than the Legal Food Frenzy and the drive’s mission to provide families with food assistance when they need it the most. The number of children in poverty who lack access to adequate food is astounding. The Legal Food Frenzy presents a wonderful opportunity for the legal community to come together to positively impact the lives of Georgians all across the state.”

“The timing of this competition comes at a critical time for the regional food banks to help them meet the increased demand for food during the summer months when kids are out of school,” said Craft. “We know that the food and funds raised during this competition will make a difference in their communities.”

All attorneys in Georgia, from law firms, to solo-practitioners, to public sector offices are encouraged to participate. Donations of both food and funds are accepted. Every $1 donated can return $8 or more in food to the community because food banks are able to leverage bulk buying power and donated food channels.

The office that raises the most food and funds statewide will be awarded the Attorney General’s Cup. Awards will also be given to the winners of several different categories. The winner of the 2014 competition, solo practitioner Joe S. Habachy, collected the equivalent of over 15,600 pounds of food. Category winners hailed from all across Georgia, including Columbus, Evans, Valdosta and Warner Robins.

There is a separate competition for Georgia law schools, which will take place March 30 – April 10, 2015. Georgia State University College of Law won the top prize last year, raising the equivalent of 18,475 pounds of food.

The Legal Food Frenzy is spearheaded by a team of young lawyers who oversee an extensive network of city representative across the state who promote the effort locally. The 2015 co-chairs are Katie Dod, Mandy Moyer, Justin Oliverio and Lisa Robinson.

Additional details and registration instructions can be found at the http://galegalfoodfrenzy.org/.