The odds that a Redmond business will take home the trophy in Hopelink’s fifth annual Can Madness competitive food drive are better than ever, with fully half of the 2014 teams from this area.
This year, 32 local businesses from Redmond, Kirkland, Bellevue and Shoreline are competing in the food drive to help stock the agency’s five food banks — including three-time winner Hancock’s Bakery and a full slate of rookies. The first weigh-in will take place Friday and the competition will continue until the winner is named April 4.
The drive is patterned after the famous national spring college basketball tournament, matching businesses in weekly competitions to see which can bring in the most food. Teams are bracketed together in pairs and one winner from each two-member bracket will advance to the following week.
To ensure that businesses of all sizes are able to compete on a level playing field, the competition uses a unique scoring system that divides the number of pounds of food collected each Friday by a denominator that reflects the size of the business.
The drive offers a way for local businesses to help stock Hopelink’s five food banks during the time when holiday donations traditionally taper off. Last year, 25 competitors in Redmond, Kirkland, Bellevue, Shoreline and Seattle collected more than 27,000 pounds of food.
Hopelink Can Madness 2014 participants:
• Redmond
180 Degrees Chiropractic
Dace’s Rock ‘n’ More Music Academy
Element Cycles
Falco Sult
First Tech Federal Credit Union
Flying Saucer Pizza
Hancock’s Bakery
Hi-Fi Brewing Company
JJ Mahoney’s Pub
Lake Hills Orthodontics
McDonald’s Book Exchange
Mills Music
Redmond Athletic Club (RAC)
Redmond Physical Therapy
Universal Avionics
VCA Redmond Animal Hospital
• Kirkland
Ben & Jerry’s
Caffe Ladro
Kirkland Bicycle
Lake Washington Physical Therapy
Lil’ People’s World
Merrill Gardens
MTI Physical Therapy
Touch of Class Barbers, LLC
Washington Federal – Kirkland
Xtreme Consulting
• Bellevue
Massage Center of Bellevue
MTI Physical Therapy
Meydenbauer Center
TJ Maxx
• Shoreline
Sky Nursery
Sport Clips
Toni&Guy Hairdressing Academy
