SunTrust Bank Chairman and CEO John Schmitt handed a check for $10,000 to Jim Chynoweth, food donations coordinator at Second Harvest Food Bank Monday witnessed by Mayor John Peyton. Schmitt said when Peyton issued a call to action for support of the food bank three weeks ago, “The story caught my attention.” Schmitt added the donation to Second Harvest was the first of $100,000 in donations that will be made by SunTrust to area charities in the next week. There has recently been a 32 percent increase in need for Second Harvest’s services, said Chynoweth. He also said the food bank is able to leverage donations at a 53:1 ratio, so SunTrust’s contribution will result in $530,000 worth of food for hungry people in North Florida, or “about 10 tractor-trailers full.” Peyton said he wanted to host the check presentation at City Hall as a way to “celebrate Jacksonville’s giving spirit and philanthropy.”
Photo by Max Marbut