Hyundai Motor America to Present $10,000 Donation to HCC Food Pantry

HOLYOKE — Representatives from Hyundai Motor America will visit Holyoke Community College (HCC) on Friday, July 17 to deliver a $10,000 check to benefit the college’s food pantry. The check ceremony will be held at 1:30 p.m. in the Thrive Center Food Pantry on the second floor of the Kittredge Center for Business and Workforce Development.

This is the fifth consecutive year Hyundai Motor America has donated to the HCC food pantry through the company’s Hyundai Hopes Initiative. This year, Hyundai is doubling its annual donation to $10,000, bringing its total contributions over five years to $42,500.

“This investment from Hyundai will directly aid students facing food insecurity and unmet essential needs, ensuring they have the stability to focus on their education and build brighter futures,” Hyundai said in a statement.

The annual donation adds to gifts made by local auto dealer Gary Rome, owner of Gary Rome Hyundai and a member of the HCC Foundation board of directors, whose efforts on behalf of HCC brought the Thrive Center and Food Pantry to the attention of the Hyundai corporate offices in California.

Rome will accompany Hyundai officials to the event. Offering brief remarks will be Julie Phillips, HCC’s executive director of Development; Thrive Center Director Ben Ostiguy; and Brandon Ramirez, director of Corporate Responsibility for Hyundai Motor North America.

Hyundai is also making donations to the Greater Holyoke YMCA for STEM education and to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts to help address food insecurity.

The Thrive Center manages the college’s food pantry and provides services, such as food and housing assistance, that help address students’ basic needs.