Event now includes Galveston and Montgomery County restaurants and text-to-give fundraising
Houston, TX (RestaurantNews.com) From Aug. 1 – 31, Houstonians will dine out to help out during Houston Restaurant Weeks, Houston’s premier philanthropic culinary event benefiting the Houston Food Bank. The event, established in 2003, provides diners with the opportunity to enjoy special menus at Houston’s finest eateries while helping fight hunger in Houston. To date, the event has collectively raised more than $1.7 million to support hunger relief in Houston.
For the first time, the 2012 event will include Galveston and Montgomery County restaurants, with their donations directly benefiting the Galveston County Food Bank and Montgomery County Food Bank, respectively. Also new this year is the opportunity to give via text. Consumers simply text the keyword ‘HRW’ to 20222 to donate $10 to the Houston Food Bank through Houston Restaurant Weeks.*
Over 160 participating restaurants will offer a three-course gourmet dinner menu for $35 per person, with $5 of each dinner sold benefiting the Houston Food Bank. In addition to the dinner menu, select restaurants will also offer a $20 two-course lunch menu, donating $3 of each lunch sold to the Houston Food Bank. All Houston Restaurant Weeks meals exclude beverages, tax and gratuity.
On July 15, diners are encouraged to visit www.HoustonRestaurantWeeks.com for a complete list of participating restaurants, menus and reservation information. On the website, visitors can search restaurants by name, cuisine, neighborhood and zip code. Reservations are required, but restaurants may accept walk-ins at their discretion.
“Houston’s restaurateurs and chefs never cease to amaze me with their generosity to help fight hunger,” said Cleverley Stone, Houston Restaurant Weeks founder and chair. “Last year, thanks to the support of our participating restaurants, we were able to raise $800,000 for the Houston Food Bank, providing 2.4 million meals for people who are food insecure. We hope to raise even more this year to support the Houston Food Bank in its mission to provide food for hunger relief charities in 18 southeast Texas counties.”
“Houston Restaurant Weeks gives people in Houston an opportunity to experience Houston’s exceptional restaurants while providing much-needed relief for families suffering from hunger,” said Brian Greene, CEO of the Houston Food Bank. “We are grateful to once again be the beneficiary of this incredible event.”
Houston Restaurant Weeks 2012 sponsors include Momentum Audi, Momentum BMW, Sysco, FKM, The Cleverley Show on Talk 650/CBS Radio Houston, ContentActive, 104.1 KRBE, 97.5 ESPN, Houston Magazine, CultureMap, 002houston, Health & Fitness Sports Magazine, Prime Living and Retna Media.
Houston Restaurant Weeks’ text giving program is certified by the Mobile Giving Foundation and is administered through Give by Cell.
About Houston Restaurant Weeks
Houston Restaurant Weeks was established in 2003 by Cleverley Stone, host of “The Cleverley Show,” a talk show about food, wine and dining on Talk 650 / CBS Radio Houston and contributor to Fox 26 Morning News. To date, the event has raised more than $1.7 million to fight hunger in Houston. For the latest Houston Restaurant Weeks information, including restaurant listings, menus, sponsor information, and reservations, visit www.HoustonRestaurantWeeks.com. Follow HRW on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/HouRestaurantWk and on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/HoustonRestaurantWeek.
About The Houston Food Bank
Now operating from a new, 308,000 square-foot facility, the Houston Food Bank is the nation’s largest size Feeding America food bank and source of food for hunger relief charities in 18 southeast Texas counties. They have been named one of 10 Top-Notch Charities across the nation by Charity Navigator. A network of nearly 500 food pantries, soup kitchens, senior centers and other agencies, feeding a total of 137,000 people each week, provides more than 53 million nutritious meals annually. Fresh produce, meat and nonperishables are distributed from the new warehouse at 535 Portwall, and hot meals are prepared and distributed from Keegan Center, a 15,000 square-foot industrial kitchen. Additional community services range from nutrition education to assistance with food stamp applications and hands-on job training. Red Barrels offer a convenient way for grocery shoppers to donate nonperishables for their neighbors in need. The Houston Food Bank, founded in 1982, is a certified member of Feeding America, the nation’s food bank network. The organization plans to grow to an annual distribution of 100 million nutritious meals by 2018.
About Give by Cell
Give by Cell is one of a select group of approved providers of mobile giving technology, licensed by the Mobile Giving Foundation (MGF) to provide text message donation services. The company provides qualifying nonprofits with services to capture text message donations and reach a new generation of first-time donors. Give by Cell is a division of Guide by Cell Inc., the world’s largest provider of mobile technologies to nonprofits and cultural institutions. Services include cell phone audio tours, text message services, iPhone and Smartphone applications mobile web, and mobile training. For further information visit www.givebycell.com.
About Mobile Giving Foundation
The Mobile Giving Foundation (MGF) was founded in 2007 to create a “mobile giving channel” that empowers non-profit organizations and donors. Working with North America’s top mobile carriers, the MGF enables the mobile channel for charitable giving by providing the organizational layer, operational guidelines and technical infrastructure for non?profit organizations and donors to use the incredible power and convenience of mobile technology. The “Mobile Giving Channel” gives wireless users a simple and immediate way to receive and respond to appeals from worthy causes with the donation charged back to the carrier bill and 100% of the donation going to the designated charity. For further information, refer to the MGF Web site at www.mobilegiving.org.
* A one-time donation of $10.00 will be added to your mobile phone bill or deducted from your prepaid balance. User must be age 18 or older or have parental permission to participate. By texting YES, the user agrees to the terms and conditions. All charges are billed by and payable to your mobile service provider. Service is available on most carriers. Donations are collected for the benefit of the Houston Food Bank by the Mobile Giving Foundation and subject to the terms found at www.hmgf.org/t. Message & Data Rates May Apply. You can unsubscribe at any time by texting STOP to short code HRW; Text HELP to HRW for help.
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