November 21 2023

Sunset Transportation celebrates 20th year supporting Scouting for Food

Sunset is proud to celebrate our 20-year partnership with the Greater St. Louis Area Council, BSA and the St. Louis Area Foodbank, as we successfully transported over 1,705,357 donated food items in one day. 

ST. LOUIS, Missouri — On Nov. 18, 2023, the Greater St. Louis Area Council, BSA (STLBSA), Scout leaders, parents, and Sunset Transportation volunteers worked together to fight the ongoing local hunger crisis during Scouting for Food, the largest one-day food drive in the U.S.  Sunset is honored to have served 20 years giving back to our hometown community the best way we know how – organizing logistics and executing under pressure.

To provide an idea of the sheer size of the day’s collection is to look at the statistics:

  • 30+ Sunset volunteers worked to coordinate, dispatch, and palletize food.
  • 9 local carriers volunteered their time, fuel, and 15 trucks to transport 1.7M donated food items; coupled with the hard-working drivers at the St. Louis Area Foodbank and Operation Food Search.
  • 480,827 pounds of donated food was collected from 37 St. Louis area firehouses and 2 alternative collection sites.
  • The donated food will provide 394,120 meals (and counting!) for local families and individuals in need during the holiday season and beyond.

“We are so proud to celebrate 20 years of partnership with the Greater St. Louis Area Council and another successful Scouting for Food event. I speak on behalf of our entire team when I say it’s always pleasure working on this event, and one we’re proud to support. Thank you to the entire Sunset family and countless volunteers that show up year after year to support those in need in our communities,” said Lindsey Graves, Chief Executive Officer for Sunset Transportation.

Sunset extends a truckload-sized thank you to our friends, customers, and carriers who volunteered items, drivers, equipment, and trucks to help transport the donations for Scouting for Food: 

  • Petro Logistics
  • Homer Express
  • EJA Trucking
  • Global Transport
  • Vega
  • First Capitol
  • Safeway Express
  • Ceva
  • StarEx Transport LLC 
  • Armada Supply Chain Solutions
  • Collegiate Awards
  • Hopkins Manufacturing
  • NexTerra Wine Company
  • Old Vienna, LLC
  • MGB Ingredients
  • McLeod Software
  • Diamond Pet Food
  • JW Software
  • Reliance
  • Saber
  • Trucker Tools
  • St. Louis Cardinals
  • South Side Machinery
  • T.C. Jacoby & Co
  • Lou Realty Group
  • Southeastern Freight Lines
  • Coca-Cola

Didn’t get to participate and still want to give?  You can donate directly to local pantries in your area by texting “ScoutFood” to 91999.  A $1 donation equals approximately four (4) meals provided to those in need!

Scouting for Food Partner Agencies
St. Louis Area Food Bank
Sunset Transportation
Operation Food Search
Local food pantries (outside St. Louis City and County)
Fire Chiefs’ Association

ABOUT SUNSET TRANSPORTATION – www.sunsettrans.com
Sunset Transportation is a Top 10 third party logistics (3PL) company with family-style Midwest roots.  We’re driven by the right-size fit for each customer, using domestic and global supply chain resources to be the ultimate service provider for shippers looking to streamline their logistics programs.  Our culture allows customers to feel like family, while receiving advanced transportation management solutions, reporting, and reliable execution.

ABOUT SCOUTING FOR FOOD – stlbsa.org/scouting-for-food/
What was intended to be a one-time service project in the greater St. Louis area, the Boy Scouts of America adopted Scouting for Food as a national BSA program and encouraged every council to participate.  Scouting for Food has continued annually since its beginning in 1985 as a signature service event throughout the now 63 counties served by the Greater St. Louis Area Council. In 2019 the drive collected approximately 1.9 million food items.  In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic created a unique challenge to the drive, but Scouts were still able to make a big impact. Over $50,000 was raised via a text-to-give campaign, equaling approximately 200,000 meals provided to local families in need.

ABOUT ST. LOUIS FOOD BANK – www.stlfoodbank.org
The St. Louis Area Food Bank, established in 1975, collects and delivers millions of food and personal care items annually to those in need throughout the bi-state area. Serving approximately 42,000 local people each week, the food bank provides four meals for every dollar donated and allocates 97 percent of its resources for food distribution.