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Torklift Central's 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge

Contest Goals: $25,000 and 10,000 pounds of food

As a thank you to everyone for their participation in this wonderful community event, Torklift donated an additional $1,000 to the food bank on behalf of each of the top five businesses competing in the cash collection category for a total of $5,000. Congratulations to all the top five winners which are listed below!

Dates: October 12 - November 15, 2017

The 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge Logo
The 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge Logo

During the holiday's many of us sit down to share a warm Thanksgiving meal with our families and friends while hundreds of families in our community stand in lines in the hopes of getting food from the Kent Food Bank.

Bundled up against the cold and waiting for the doors to open, these families are filled with an optimism that they will be able to give thanks with their loved ones and not have to go hungry for Thanksgiving and the Christmas season.

Dropping off food from the  6th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge
Dropping off food from the 6th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge

In order to give them a memorable Thanksgiving and holiday season, the community can join together for the 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge and help out our neighbors with a goal of raising $25,000 and 10,000 pounds of food.

In 2011, the Kent Food Bank lost a large portion of their funding during Thanksgiving, leaving many scrambling to find ways to feed their families. This deeply impacted the community and Torklift Central responded by organizing the first ever Kent Turkey Challenge.

Over the past six years, donations to the Kent Food Bank from the Annual Kent Turkey Challenge total more than $111,976 and 33,560 pounds of food, feeding thousands of people that would otherwise go without a Thanksgiving meal. Last year, the turkey challenge raised so much money that the food bank was also able to purchase turkeys and chickens, as well as real butter, fresh celery and fresh sweet potatoes.


Our age 5-7 group winner from the Turkey Challenge Coloring Contest in 2016!

Every year the Annual Kent Turkey Challenge grows in popularity and competition between the local businesses and organizations involved. Last year alone we had 79 businesses join! A friendly rivalry, the Annual Kent Turkey Challenge is to see who can collect and raise the most food and monetary donations for the Kent Food Bank. One hundred percent of the proceeds are given to local Kent families that are combating hunger during Thanksgiving and year round.

For some added fun, the 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge will also offer a coloring competition! The Turkey Challenge Coloring Competition is available for participants ages 13 years old and younger. Download below or get a printout to color at each of the participating businesses. Submit your coloring page by Nov. 17, to Torklift Central at 315 Central Ave N., in Kent for a chance to win a prize!

Torklift Central asks for your support to make the 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge the most successful to date. As a community, this is an opportunity for us to make a lasting positive impact in the lives of families by making sure no one is turned away from the Kent Food Bank because of lack of food.

The Annual Kent Turkey Challenge is not just about food; it's about making memories with loved ones. It's about making sure parents can give their children the memory of a bountiful and happy Thanksgiving.

Some great things that are going on this year for the 7th Annual Turkey Challenge:

  • July 2017: The 7th Annual Turkey Challenge receives its first donation from the Enterprise Holdings Foundation!
  • The Kent City Council and Mayor Suzette Cooke will be announcing an official proclamation of the Turkey Challenge on Oct. 3
  • The Seattle-Tacoma Box Company donated boxes to use for the Challenge. The boxes will be distributed to participating businesses for collecting donations
  • Look for Turkey Challenge details in the Kent Chamber and Kent Downtown Partnership newsletters
  • The Kent Reporter is spotlighting the top five leaders of the Challenge every week
  • There will be a coloring competition for all ages which you can download below and bring to Torklift Central to be entered to win a prize

On the Torklift Central website, we will list every contributing organization on the leader board which is located below. A counter of the total contributions the community has collected above will also tabulate how much our community has left to go before we reach our goal! We will also be showcasing the leaders of the challenge through our blog, e-newsletters and on our Facebook.

With your help, we can reach our seventh anniversary goal that every family in our community will be able to share a special holiday meal and that no household will have to go hungry on Thanksgiving.

To participate in the 7th Annual Kent Turkey Challenge, please contact Kerstin at: [email protected] or enter in the Want to Participate form below.

Come Donate at our Booth

Find us at the 2017 Kent Business Expo October 11th!

2017 Kent Business Expo

Sponsors

The Kent Reporter
The Seattle Tacoma Box Company
I Love Kent .net
The Kent Chamber of Commerce


The Kent Chamber of Commerce


The Kent Downtown Partnership

 

Contest Leader Board

We want to recognize the individual contributions of each business. There is no donation too small as every bit helps. We want to thank each of these businesses for their continued support and donation efforts.

As a thank you to everyone for their participation in this wonderful community event, Torklift donated an additional $1,000 to the food bank on behalf of each of the top five businesses competing in the cash collection category for a total of $5,000. Congratulations to all the top five winners which are listed below!