KeyBank Feeds 200 Families at KeyBus Kickoff Event in Buffalo

Following the recent mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, KeyBank Corporate Responsibility Officer Chiwuike Owunwanne knew something had to be done to help the nearby neighborhood recover. The supermarket where the shooting happened is closed for the foreseeable future leaving the area without a place to get fresh food.

Owunwanne acted quickly to help the neighborhood. He worked with partners to add a unique and uplifting element to an event that had already been scheduled in the neighborhood on June 1. That day, KeyBank’s new KeyBus planned to visit the East Delavan branch in Buffalo for a Buffalo kickoff event. The KeyBus serves as a community connector, enabling people to participate in financial wellness education, job searching and mobile account opening.

“My thinking about the bus started evolving. There is a need for food in the community, so how can we pivot and have the KeyBus meet the moment,” asked Owunwanne. “The moment being a community that is in grief and no longer having access to the one supermarket that served an entire community.”

Owunwanne and KeyBank partnered with Urban Fruits and Veggies, Buffalo Go Green, Sunset Fruit & Vegetable Company and FeedMore WNY to distribute fresh produce at the KeyBus event. KeyBank teammates volunteered to distribute more than 200 bags of food and dozens of $10 vouchers for fresh produce that day, bringing much needed resources to the neighborhood impacted by the shooting. Owunwanne said it was heartwarming to see this pop-up event succeed and support a neighborhood that is still struggling.

“To have this fresh produce here at this corner and see people’s faces when they saw what was in those bags was really touching and special. I think a lot of people were elated to see what was taking place with the KeyBus. I am glad to work for an organization that not only listened and adjusted, but also recognized their role in meeting the needs of its community. This is just the beginning of how we will support our neighbors through this recovery.”

• Read more about KeyBank’s response to the mass shooting in Buffalo
   
• Read more about how Key is meeting the needs of clients and communities through a diverse range of products, services, programs, and initiative, such as the KeyBus, in the 2021 Environmental, Social, and Governance Report.

Watch WIVB-TV’s coverage of the KeyBus kickoff event in Buffalo in the video above.