The holidays were a little brighter for hundreds of Hunts Point families this season thanks to a special meal donation sponsored by Baldor Specialty Foods. In cooperation with the Bronx Community Board #2 and The Point Community Development Center, Baldor Specialty Foods reached out to its Hunts Point neighbors by providing tasty holiday meals, which were distributed at a special event on Saturday, Dec. 19 at the Point.Org Headquarters.

Working with several of its food vendor partners, Baldor prepared 500 family kits, which fed over 2,000 people. The kits provided “all the fixings” a family of four needs to enjoy a sumptuous and nutritious holiday dinner. The meal boxes, which were packed by Baldor employee volunteers, included a large turkey, traditional fruits and vegetables, dinner rolls, milk, juice and a dessert.

Hunts Point is a struggling South Bronx community where 50 percent of the residents live below the poverty line and many live barely above that. It’s also home to Baldor’s corporate headquarters where the company employs more than a thousand people, 65 percent of whom are Bronx residents. As the second largest employer in the borough, Baldor is committed to the community and supports many Bronx-based organizations year-round including Part of the Solution, Food Bank for New York City and the Hunts Point Economic Development Council.

TJ Murphy, chief executive officer of Baldor, is quick to point out that the food drive has been a community effort. Guida Dairy is contributed 500 cartons of milk, Rockland Bakery donated 2,000 dinner rolls, Westside Foods supplied the turkeys, Borax provided the boxes and Rollo Mio brought the bread.

“Baldor’s a family company,” said Murphy. “And we’ve always considered our employees and neighbors part of the family. The holidays are all about the joy of sharing food with family, and that’s what this event is all about.”