A volunteer in the Faith Food Factory in Augusta pack backpacks for the BackPack Program, which provides elementary school students with four weekend meals each week of the school year.

The Georgia Tech Office of Legal Affairs jumped into an early lead for the Atlanta portion of the Georgia Legal Food Frenzy, the annual competition in which the legal community raises funds for food banks around the state. The event helps the 20 percent of Georgians—and 25 percent of Georgia children—who do not know how they'll get their next meal.

Around 5 p.m. Monday, Georgia Tech had raised $10,820, backed by a $10,000 donation and eight other gifts.

In second place was Joe S. Habachy PC, a three-time winner of the Attorney General's Cup for raising the most food per employee, measured as four pounds per $1 donated. As of Monday afternoon he'd raised $3,300.

In the Atlanta portion of the competition, Habachy was followed by the following teams: Hunton Andrews Kurth ($2,201); Davis, Pickren, Seydel & Sneed ($1,300); Jones Day ($1,245); DeKalb County Public Defender's Office ($990); Georgia Department of Human Services ($725); Dentons US ($700); Jenkins & Roberts ($635); and Bryan Cave Leighton Painser ($635).

Jenkins & Roberts was the top winner in 2017. Coleman Talley of Valdosta won for most food raised overall.

The event, sponsored by Attorney General Chris Carr, the Young Lawyers Division of the State Bar of Georgia and the Georgia Food Bank Association, last year raised a record $329,000 and 19,000 pounds of food for Georgia's food banks.

At the Golden Harvest Food Bank in Augusta, public relations assistant Christina Alexander said Monday that the Legal Food Frenzy is very important because it keeps food kitchens stocked through the summer months. That's when needs increase for families receiving assistance, as children can't receive free breakfasts and lunches they get during school months, and air conditioning bills go up, adding more pressure.

She said the 300 agencies that deliver food from Golden Harvest's warehouse to individuals often help their clients on finding jobs and meeting other needs. She cited a statistic that people getting government food assistance do so for about seven months on average, so “They're not sitting there.”

The food helps provide basic needs as families build a steady income because “it's very difficult to do anything when you're hungry,” she said.

The competition lasts through April 27. Teams can still enter at http://galegalfoodfrenzy.org/. To donate and see the Atlanta Community Food Bank's running scorecard, go to http://engage.acfb.org/site/TR?fr_id=1862&pg=entry.