HAMILTON COUNTY— A cross-town rivalry between Carmel and Westfield is taking on new meaning this football season, as the two Hamilton County communities compete to raise money for those facing food insecurity.
Ahead of their IHSAA sectional championship game Friday night, the Mayors and Councils of both cities are challenging each other to see who can bring in the most donations for Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank.
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"There's been a pretty big rivalry between Westfield and Carmel for a few years in football. We felt like rather than just focus on the rivalry on the field, there was a way to create some unity in helping each other, helping our neighbors," Carmel Mayor Sue Finkam said.
The timing couldn't be more critical. Food banks across the region are experiencing increased demand during the holiday season, compounded by concerns about SNAP benefits and rising costs of living.
"There's a lot of food insecurity in this world, and right now it's a little bit exacerbated with the concern about SNAP benefits," Finkam said. "We thought, what better time than now to come together and focus on how we can help our neighbors."
Despite Hamilton County's reputation as one of the most affluent areas in Indiana, food insecurity remains a significant challenge. In 2022, nearly 10% of the area qualified as food insecure, and those numbers are expected to rise with increasing housing costs.
The winner of the competition is determined by which community raises more money for the Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank.
"Cash is important for our food banks because there's such a variety of food that our community needs. So we wanna make sure they have maximum flexibility to serve the customers that they have in our county," Finkam said.
Suzanna Hobson from Hamilton County Harvest Food Bank said the initiative comes at a crucial time.
"When I received a call from Mayor Finkam's office from her herself, I was just excited. This is fantastic," Hobson shared.
The food bank is seeing new faces in their pantries as economic uncertainty continues to impact families across the county.
"We're seeing a lot of influx of new faces in the pantries with uncertainty of things. There's always gonna be a need out there. Even when the SNAP benefits do kick back in, there's gonna be a little bit of a catch-up piece," Hobson said.
To learn more about this challenge, visit the Harvest Food Bank website.
A list of Indiana FSSA-vetted Food banks to donate to is available on their website.
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Griffin Gonzalez is the In Your Community multimedia journalist for Hamilton County. He joined WRTV in January of 2024. Griffin loves to tell stories about people overcoming their biggest obstacles and share the good news that his community has to offer. Share your story ideas and important issues with Griffin by emailing him at griffin.gonzalez@wrtv.com.
