Laredo Medical Center's Hosts 3rd Annual Jars of Love Peanut Butter Drive

Laredo, TX (April 2, 2025) – Earlier today, during National Peanut Butter and Jelly Day, Laredo Medical Center presented the South Texas Food Bank with the incredible results of their annual peanut butter drive. During this year's 3rd iteration of the drive, Laredo Medical Center collected over 7,077 jars of peanut butter and, through an employee donation program, raised an additional $1,047 to support the South Texas Food Bank and our hunger relief efforts.

Laredo Medical Center's Jars of Love is a yearly campaign that runs throughout March, showcasing the hospital's commitment to the community and ensuring that neighbors have the nutrition they need to live healthy and prosperous lives. As part of the tradition of this campaign, Laredo Medical Center CEO Jorge Leal sets a goal for jars collected, and if that goal is met, he wears a Mr. Peanut costume to the presentation. This year, the goal was 4,000 jars, and they completely blew past that goal results in Mr. Leal proudly wearing his costume once again for the third year in a row.

Helping them meet their goals were the following three hospital departments that collected the most peanut butter jars:

Unit 5C – 720 jars

ICU/1E – 433 jars

Quality Department – 208 jars

"We're extremely thankful for Laredo Medical Center's continued support over these past 3 years, and how every year the drive just gets bigger and bigger. Seeing this campaign be citywide and across so many organizations means the world to us, and we can't wait to see what next year is like. This will help countless neighbors in our service area, and at the end of the day, that is what it is all about," said Alma Boubel, CEO of the South Texas Food Bank.

It is also important to note that Laredo Medical Center did not do this alone! They enlisted the help of community organizations and businesses from across Laredo.

The following organizations contributed to this incredible cause:

Laredo Heat Soccer Club

Laredo Medical Center Auxiliary

Trashco Inc.

LTX Select Volleyball Club

Skyline EMS Inc.

Estrella Provider Services LLC

Dump-IT Dumpster Rentals LLC

United Charity Association from United ISD

Laredo College

Antonio Gonzalez Middle School

Kennedy Zapata Elementary School

Cheddar's Scratch Kitchen

The largest community donations came from the following organizations:

Kennedy Zapata Middle School (KZE Rocket Art Club) with 255 jars

The Laredo Fire Department (cadets and staff in EMS and fire training divisions) with 477 jars.

Lastly, the peanut butter drive had the support of local businesses that helped collect donations at their locations, and we’d like to extend our gratitude for their generosity and commitment:

Texas A&M International University

Jalapeños Pizza

Pizza Box

Organic Man Coffee Trike

Laredo Fire Department Administration Center

Fighting hunger is something no organization can do alone, and we're thankful for the support of organizations like Laredo Medical Center, alongside the countless other organizations, businesses, and individuals that contributed to this amazing peanut butter drive.