And Feinstein is ready to do something similar this year.

Friendship Trays donations received between March 1 and April 30 will count toward Feinstein's fund-raising challenge.

Feinstein, a Rhode Island philanthropist and former teacher and financial columnist, has launched his 11th annual giveaway of $1 million to groups that fight hunger.

Groups that participate in the challenge receive proportional shares of the $1 million based on what they raise on their own between March 1 and April 30.

In 11 years, according to Feinstein, his challenge to U.S. agencies has helped them raise a total of $760 million.

Below is an excerpt from a Feinstein Foundation list of 2007 recipients. The excerpt focuses on North Carolina, and includes all N.C.-based agencies on the Foundation list, the amount they raised locally in qualifying donations, and the amount each agency received from the Feinstein Foundation. The full list is available at the link below.

Last year, Friendship Trays received $500 from the Feinstein Foundation -- our share of the $1 million based on donations of $66,876.

Help us do better this year. Donate before April 30. Donate by check we receive before then, or donate right now via JustGive.org. Either way, your donation will help make sure that a Rhode Island philanthropist supports your Charlotte-Mecklenburg meals-on-wheels program.

 For Friendship Trays' coverage of Feinstein's 2007 challenge, click here. For a spreadsheet of all donations made by the Foundation during the 2007 challenge, sorted by state, click here. For a Wikipedia article on Feinstein, click here. And if you have a lot of reading time, read the Providence Journal story on how Feinstein made millions in the direct mail business.

Those fact-checking the "proportionality" of the gifts from the Foundation should know that the minimum gift from the Foundation to qualifying agencies is not $1, but $250, and that the maximum gift is $50,000.