For the third year in a row, KTLA hosted the Lead with Love telethon to benefit Project Angel Food in July.

The station partnered with the organization to raise the funds to be able to serve more people within the community.

Big names like Debbie Gibson, Loni Love, Taylor Dane, and Oprah took part in the event virtually and in-person. The star-studded evening raised $1.1 million. The original goal was a million.

Founded in 1989, the organization strives to end food insecurity and improve health outcomes of ill people by delivering medically tailored meals with care and compassion directly to their homes.

Project Angel Food feeds more than 2,500 clients, with over 1.2 million meals delivered each year. The charity has a Four-Star Charity Navigator rating and has been declared an essential service by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.

“These are the invisible people of L.A. because they can’t go out. These are the people who can’t shop and cook for themselves,” said Project Angel Food CEO Richard Ayoub. “Project Angel Food is suffering from the effects of inflation just like the rest of us. Even if we just keep the same amount of meals we did last year, there’s a difference of a million dollars.”

“What they do everyday is amazing and with inflation and everything, they need money. They need help,” explained KTLA 5 Executive Producer of Creative Jake Burch. “So this is night we raise that extra million dollars to cover those costs.”

“It’s become such an event of the summer,” Burch continued. “The live event of the summer.”

To learn more about Project Angel Food visit angelfood.org.

To donate, call 323-436-5050 or text LOVE3 to 76278.