Once again emergency services crews will team up with local groups and take to the streets and fight back against hunger in what has become the biggest annual drive for the Community Connections Food Bank. During the event, teams of volunteers go door-to-door – accompanied by lights and sirens – to gather donations of non-perishable foods.
“Affordability is an ever-increasing challenge in Revelstoke, with more and more folks turning to the food bank to help make ends meet,” Community Connections said in a statement. “Community Connections’ Food Bank has been serving record-breaking numbers of our community members in recent months and needs food and cash donations to meet the demand for support.”
The annual Emergency Services Food Drive sees volunteers collect one-quarter of all food donations for the entire year during the food drive.
Currently, the food bank provides food for more than 600 local households. According to Community Connections, this number is double the demand pre-pandemic. The non-profit organization is also seeing clients visiting more frequently, an indication that food insecurity has deepened. Additionally, the rise in food costs has directly impacted the amount of food Community Connections is able to purchase for the food bank.
The food bank operates solely on grant funding and donations, both monetary and food. A large portion of the foods distributed to food bank users are purchased directly by Community Connections, and the organization said increasing food costs is requiring the organization to stretch its funding “as best [it] can.”
“Though we can boast a beautiful new space to operate our food bank in, this space was created with capital infrastructure funding streams at the provincial and federal levels, which are not related to our food purchasing funds.”
This year’s event takes place Tuesday, Sept. 12 from 4 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. The community is invited to rally friends, family or a team to help collect donations during the event. Anyone who is away during the event but wants to donate can do so by dropping off donations at Save-On-Foods or in the donation bin at the Community Connections’ Outreach Building, located at 416 Second Street West. Those offering donations of food are asked to please ensure the items being donated are safe to consume.
“In past food drives, we have had to discard 30 per cent of the food received because it is unusable,” said Hannah Whitney, Community Food Outreach Coordinator. “We’re hoping that community members can purchase food items or pick items from their homes to donate. If you wouldn’t eat it, please don’t donate it.”
While all donations of food items in good condition that are still within the best before date are welcome, the food bank said the most needed items are: canned tomatoes, canned vegetables, canned fruit, dried or canned soup, pasta and sauces, canned tuna and salmon, peanut butter and other nut butters, rice and grains, cereal, personal care items (soap, toothpaste, shampoo, toilet tissue) and pet food. Please note that home canned products or partially used items cannot be accepted.
For more information about the Emergency Services Food Drive or to get involved, visit Community Connections’ Facebook page or call 250-837-2920.
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