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Tsunami aid gets full plate
Maroun's family owns Caravan Trading, a company that manufactures products for national brands. They also make MREs - Meals ready to Eat - for the military. A recent overrun produced about 500,000 more MREs than the military ordered. "We do large-scale runs. When I do a run, it's a run," Maroun said. "And when we make a mistake, it's a big one." Maroun already had given some of the extra food to community organizations such as Meals on Wheels. But with so much surplus, he came up with the idea of donating it to people in South Asia who are recovering from last month's tsunami. But there was a problem. How do you get that much food from here to there? Maroun contacted Gifts In Kind International, a philanthropic organization that helps businesses provide charity where it is needed. The organization helped arrange for several airfreight companies to ship all of it to Southeast Asia. Then another thought crossed Maroun's mind. As long as they're shipping the MREs, why not have other local businesses donate items that can go along with the ride? He discussed the idea with city officials, who suggested Maroun work through the Chamber of Commerce and ask all city businesses to chip in. "We're going to try to hit it on multilevels - get more bang for the buck," Maroun said. Rather than ask for food items, Maroun said he will focus on cash donations. Unlike MREs that have a three-year shelf life, most food items would spoil before reaching their intended recipients, he said. Saying "time is of the essence," Maroun plans to have everything ready to donate by the end of the month, culminating with a "donation ceremony" for contributors and city officials. Union City Fire Chief Chris Maxwell, one of the officials whose Maroun contacted, spoke of the plan at the City Council meeting last week, asking the city to lend its support to the plan. Mayor Mark Green, who said he had not yet spoken with Maroun, said with that part of the world so hard-hit, he hopes the endeavor succeeds. "Whatever aid he can gather up, for any of the countries, really reflects well on him and the companies that contribute," Green said.
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