By: David Fikes, Executive Director, FMI Foundation
When I was growing up, parents didn’t have cell phones, smart watches or tablets to stay in touch with their children at all hours of the day. After leaving the house, I was completely on my own. My whereabouts could not be pinpointed with an app or high-tech tracking device. Nonetheless, my parents were kept at ease by the knowledge that I was at least somewhere in our neighborhood, whether hanging out at a friend’s house, playing baseball, or picking up candy from the nearby convenience store.
Ultimately, it didn’t matter where I was because once the sun began to set, I knew it was time to make my way home. However, if I was too immersed in fun and games to acknowledge the time, my mother had a fail-proof method of grabbing my attention – banging her favorite soup pot. With wooden spoon in one hand and double-handled soup pot in the other, my mom could generate a sound guaranteed to startle birds and disturb neighbors trying to read their evening papers. Her bombilating call reverberated throughout the neighborhood and carried with it a singular message: Time to come home, dinner’s ready.
I do not have my mother’s soup pot, nor her penchant for beating it to help mark deadlines. Instead, I must rely on words to call attention to a very special family meals related deadline: It’s time to apply for the 2022 Gold Plate Awards! Nominations close Tuesday, November 1, 2022.
The FMI Foundation’s Gold Plate Awards highlight outstanding programs by food retailers, suppliers and community organizations that encourage family meals. The companies and organizations that develop programs around National Family Meals MonthTM and the year-long Family Meals Movement make a significant impact on consumers. In fact, of those who heard the family meals message, a whopping 91% reported taking positive action, according to a post-Family Meals Month survey by Harris Poll.
Like my mother’s homespun dinner gong calling us to the table, family meals programs foster togetherness in unique and powerful ways. Those who invest their time and efforts into urging people to “Stay Strong with Family Meals” have much to be proud of and deserve to be recognized. That’s why the FMI Foundation is so eager to celebrate them.
The deadline for the 2022 Gold Plate awards is fast approaching. Nominate your company’s program today by clicking the button below.
