Smithfield Foods’ Gwaltney brand partnered with the Chesapeake-based Roc Solid Foundation for a fifth consecutive year in support of the nonprofit organization’s mission to support families facing pediatric cancer.

This year, Gwaltney will donate $50,000 toward several Roc Solid initiatives, including sponsoring the organization’s inaugural “Play Defeats Cancer Tour,” which will build 30 playsets for families in 30 days across the country.

On June 29, Gwaltney hosted a “Ready Bag” packing event at Smithfield Foods’ headquarters. These bags include comfort items and essentials for families whose children require hospitalization. The bags were dropped off at the Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters in Norfolk later that afternoon.

As part of the Gwaltney brand’s Building On Hope campaign, from June through September Gwaltney will provide three “Roc Solid On Demand” playsets and three “Play it Forward” playsets to six families throughout the southeast. 

“Gwaltney is excited to support various Roc Solid Foundation initiatives for the fifth year in a row,” said Chris Braselton, brand manager for Gwaltney at Smithfield Foods. “By being a part of these programs, Gwaltney can continue to give back to our local communities and help families facing pediatric cancer.”

Roc Solid, founded in 2009 by pediatric liver cancer survivor Eric Newman, focuses on the power of play for children diagnosed with cancer by surprising them with new backyard playsets and Ready Bags. Gwaltney, founded in 1870 by Smithfield’s P.D. Gwaltney, has operated as a Smithfield Foods brand since the early 1980s.

“This year, Gwaltney has helped us step up our efforts to love and serve families fighting pediatric cancer by supporting our ‘Play Defeats Cancer Tour’ and many of our other initiatives,” Newman said. “This partnership has allowed us to continue our mission of providing hope for kids year after year, one playset or Ready Bag at a time.”