Edwards Lifesciences Donates Meals to Community’s Needy
- by Guest
A woman and her daughter enjoy a meal donated by Edwards Lifesciences at the Theriault House homeless shelter (Photo courtesy of the Illumination Foundation)
Edwards Lifesciences Cold Production Lead Angelique Neugent
making salads for community donation
Edwards Lifesciences in Irvine, CA, is the global leader in patient-focused medical innovations for structural heart disease, as well as critical care and surgical monitoring. Many of its staff are in production and cannot work from home, so Executive Chef Rene Adame, Resident District Manager Andrew Cvitanich, and the Bon Appétit team continue to serve more than 1,450 meals per day.
And in mid-April, they added 430 more, for homeless Orange County residents. Through a partnership with the Orange County Community Foundation, to which Edwards Lifesciences CEO Mike Mussallem is deeply connected, Edwards is funding these meal donations.
The first batches, which included a quinoa and farro bowl with grilled chicken and a Mediterranean tuna and pasta bowl, went to Mercy House and the Costa Mesa Bridge Shelter.
“The feedback I get from our clients is overwhelming. They love the food and they are so happy and blessed to get your support,” shared Maria Popescu, manager of logistics at the Ilumination Foundation, a nonprofit serving homeless adults and children. “Everyone is sending messages about how delicious the food is, how happy the clients are, how joyful are the kids eating the food — which is a milestone hard to beat!”
— Submitted by Michael Venckus, Regional Vice President