NEW ORLEANS(WGNO) – The 7th annual “Rubber Duck Derby” kicked off in City Park Sunday afternoon for the second year in a row. It may seem silly but it’s not all fun and games. Those little yellow ducks can feed up to a family of three and 15 meals each.
“It’s a community driven event and it pulls people from all zip codes to contribute to the food bank, and raises a lot of awareness about the work that Second Harvest does in 23 parishes. It does a whole lot for the state,” says volunteer Kristen Riegel.
Each rubber duck costs $5.00 to “adopt” by any person or corporation.
“For every duck that is adopted we can provide 15 meals for children in need, or seniors that may be choosing between food and medicine, so it’s really a fun, fun, fun activity but does an amazing job of providing almost a quarter of a million meals for people in need this summer, and through the rest of the year,” says the CEO of Second Harvest, Natalie Jayroe.
23,000 ducks were dumped in the lake and the top ten ducks that made it to the finish line first, won incredible prizes. Fist place won $5,000 and free tickets on Southwest Airlines.
Second Harvest really depends on the generosity of the community. Donations can be made at no-hunger.org
