a discovery behind local grocery stores. A destitute mother of 10 well-fed children pointed out “a bank of food” from which she fed her family. Huge amounts of surplus food were being thrown out by grocery stores, food that was frozen but still edible, loose vegetables, stale bread. Inside stores John found less perishable throwaways such as dented cans and leaky bags of rice and sugar. Within a year, in 1967, John had established the location at which all the food that grocery stores could not sell would be housed and distributed. He named it St. Mary's Food Bank in honor of the donation provided by St. Mary's Basilica. In accordance to his vow of poverty, John took no salary during his first decade at St. Mary's. He wore secondhand clothes, got his food at the food bank and lived in a donated room above a garage. Second Harvest and Global Food Banking In 1975 John accepted a $50,000 federal grant which would be utilized to establish 18 food banks across America. In 1976 John left St. Mary's and established America's Second Harvest (known as Feeding America since 2008). Guided by John, this organization established food banking standards and guidelines as well as acquisition of food from large national manufacturers. Businesses were able to cut the costs of disposing unusable but edible food as well as taking tax breaks by helping multiple charities. In 1983 John left America's Second Harvest to establish Food Banking Inc. (which became International Food Bank Services in 1991 and is now known as Global FoodBanking Network). John served as a consultant to food banks around the world, traveling to Canada, Mexico, Brussels and Spain to oversee the start up of their food banks. John also helped establish food banks throughout Africa, Eastern Europe, Asia, South America and Australia. Honors and awards 1972 Phoenix Valley Leadership Man of the Year 1972 Phoenix Advertising Club Man of The Year 1972 National Center for Volunteer Action National Volunteer Award 1980 Salvation Army Centennial Award 1989 Pillsbury's Pioneer Award at US Conference of Mayors 1992 Norman Vincent Peale's America Award for Ingenuity presented at the Kennedy Center 1992 National Caring Award 1994 Commendatory Knight of the Papal Order of St. Gregory the Great 2003 108th Congress Congressional Record Award for humanitarian work 2003 National Association of Home Care and Hospice – Mother Teresa Lifetime Achievement Award References 1923 births