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Feeding Northeast Florida has received their customized Defender 130 vehicle for winning the Community Services Award of the Defender Service Awards
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Feeding Northeast Florida rescues and distributes food to fight hunger across 12 counties, providing mobile pantries, nutrition boxes, healthy food prescriptions and other essential resources to help strengthen lives and communities
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Defender has awarded six charitable organizations across the U.S. and Canada a custom Defender 130 vehicle, to further their ability to service their communities
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For more information about the Defender brand, vehicles, and the Defender Service Awards Presented by CHASE, please visit https://www.landroverusa.com/defender/index.html
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. –– May 1, 2026 –– Feeding Northeast Florida (FNEFL) has received their customized Defender 130 vehicle for winning the Community Services Award category in the 2025 Defender Service Awards presented by CHASE. The vehicle handover took place at the Land Rover Jacksonville retailer where the winning organization accepted the keys to their new Defender. With its eye-catching wrap design and array of accessories, the Defender is equipped to effectively promote Feeding Northeast Florida throughout the community, while its capabilities will expand their reach to even more people.
The British adventure brand, Defender has continued its legacy of supporting global humanitarian and philanthropic efforts. Inspired by their outstanding community service efforts as well as exemplifying the brand’s values, the six winning organizations have received a customized Defender 130 vehicle to support their steadfast dedication to aiding their local communities. Featuring three rows of seating accommodating up to eight volunteers, along with 88.9 cubic feet (2,156 liters) of load capacity, the Defender 130 will aid them to further their mission of service and build on the enduring legacy of Defender brand’s global philanthropic efforts.
Each winning organization had the opportunity to customize their new vehicle with purposeful Defender accessories, robust enough to support their unique demands, along with a personalized exterior vehicle wrap. The winning charitable organization has also received a $30,000 grant from the respective category sponsors.
Susan King, President & CEO of Feeding Northeast Florida, said: “Receiving this Defender 130 is an incredible honor and a meaningful addition to our work across Northeast Florida. Our fleet of refrigerated semi-trucks does incredible work moving large volumes of food across our 12-county service area, but you can't take a semi into every neighborhood. Much of our work is centered around addressing food insecurity in very rural parts of Florida. In addition, we are no strangers to disaster recovery efforts and this vehicle gives us the agility to go where the need is, getting food directly into the communities and hard-to-reach places where our neighbors need us most. We're deeply grateful to Defender, Chase, and our category sponsor ei3 for recognizing our mission and investing in our ability to serve.”
As the region’s largest hunger-relief nonprofit, Feeding Northeast Florida (FNEFL) embodies a mission to use food as a catalyst to strengthen lives and communities. The organization rescues high-quality surplus food, sources nutritious food and mobilizes the public to fight hunger across a 12-county service area the size of New Jersey. Programs include mobile pop-up pantries, agency-supported permanent pantries, children’s snack meals, nutrition box deliveries, healthy food prescriptions, veteran and military pantry support and the distribution of other basic needs including menstrual products. In 2024, FNEFL distributed 35.7 million pounds of food — equal to 30 million meals — through nearly 500 agency partners to over 310,020 people experiencing hunger and food insecurity — including nearly 94,000 children. FNEFL operates with a team of 97, two warehouses, a fleet of 20 refrigerated box trucks and nearly 16,000 volunteers.
To learn more about 2025 Defender Service Awards Presented by Chase and six category winners, please visit: https://media.landrover.com/en-us/news/2025/11/driven-purpose-nonprofit-heroes-win-defender-service-awards
About Feeding Northeast Florida
Feeding Northeast Florida (FNEFL) is the region’s largest nonprofit (501c3) food bank and hunger relief network. FNEFL provides nutritious foods and other essential goods to those in need and strives to improve the quality of life for people living in and around Northeast and North Central Florida by addressing food insecurity, poverty and poor health. Alongside our network of food distribution, agency and community partners, the Food Bank provides food resources and hope to help all people living in our 12-county service area (Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Levy, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns and Union) who struggle to feed themselves and their families. Feeding Northeast Florida works daily to find solutions to address the issues of food insecurity and poverty through awareness, advocacy, education, and action in ways that promote dignity, respect and empowerment. For more information, visit feedingnefl.org.
About the Defender brand
Defender embraces the impossible. Each member of the Defender family is purposefully designed and highly desirable. A modern-day hero that respects the past but at the same time anticipates the future.
Available in 90, 110 and 130 body styles, with up to eight seats, each has a charisma of its own.
Media Contacts:
Ashley Williams
Senior PR & Communications Manager, Wingard for FNEFL
ashley@wearewingard.com
Joe Stauble
PR Manager JLR North America, for Land Rover
jstauble@jaguarlandrover.com
Jeff Ehoodin
Land Rover Senior PR Specialist, for Land Rover
jehoodin@jaguarlandrover.com