ATL Standard

The Atlanta Hawks and UPS teamed up with local social impact startup Goodr to provide Thanksgiving Day essentials to more than 350 families in Clayton County.

Grocery items provided to the families included such options as tea, lemonade, milk (or non-dairy alternative), turkey, eggs, rice, rolls, chicken broth, canned vegetables, mac and cheese, cornbread mix, sweet potato casserole ingredients, banana pudding ingredients, dessert option, two breakfast items, one produce bag and one shelf stable bag, according to NBA.com.

“We are grateful to join UPS and Goodr in hosting this special pop-up just before Thanksgiving,” Hawks Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility Andrea Carter told NBA.com. “Having Coach McMillan, Clint Capela and Jalen Johnson carve out some time for this event to impact so many families in our community speaks to what it really means to be ‘True to Atlanta.’”

UPS executives were also pleased.

“As we celebrate our 70 years of service in communities this November, we are proud to partner with the Atlanta Hawks and Goodr to move our world forward by delivering what matters during the holidays -- meals for families in need and seasonal job opportunities for extra income,” Nikki Clifton, president, Social Impact and The UPS Foundation, said on NBA.com.

McMillan and players Clint Capella and Jalen Johnson took part in the Riverdale-based event  at the Virginia Burton Gray Recreation Center. 

Earlier this year, the Hawks and State Farm Arena opened the ‘True To You’ Career Center, as a workforce development center to assist the unemployed and underemployed in the metro Atlanta area, showing their continued commitment to giving back to their community. It is a workforce development center that helps unemployed and underemployed people build their careers through resume writing, preparing for interviews, quality communication and building better customer service skills. 

Atlanta Hawks executives, the Atlanta Hawks Dancers and the team mascot Harry the Hawk also attended the event in Riverdale with volunteers from UPS. UPS is formally designated as the official delivery and logistics partner of the Atlanta Hawks. The event lasted two hours and focused on packing food boxes. 

Community involvement is considered a "core value" by UPS, which is why they participated in the event with the Hawks, according to NBA.com.