The Sunnyvale Sun

News

Event benefits food bank

By Cody Kraatz

Employees at Applied Materials' Sunnyvale campus built four human figures and a globe--dubbed SOUPer structures--with cans of food on Nov. 15, part of a competition to raise food and money for Second Harvest Food Bank.

"They could take them out bowling, they could take them out for a beer or they could have them take part in this canned food drive, which benefits the community," said Michelle Sklar, Second Harvest senior director of development, who helped judge the competition according to Applied Materials criteria.

Alas, the Sunnyvale team, formed by the 6,500-strong semiconductor manufacturing Silicon Systems Group, did not win. The Santa Clara team that did will get a trophy, bragging rights and funds donated on its behalf to Second Harvest, which aims to raise 1.9 million pounds of food and $5 million in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties by January.

By the fourth day of its food drive, Applied Materials had brought in $44,000 and 7,068 pounds of food, enough for 92,182 meals.

The Sunnyvale team's four human figures represent the group's four business units and the tuna can globe represents its global perspective.

"We spent a lot of time in Costco playing with cans," said Patti Seto, leader of the 10-member SOUPer structure team.