Need for food climbs ever higher
MINDEMOYA—With increasing referrals and requests for food support through the Manitoulin Family Resources (MFR) Emergency Food Assistance Program throughout the year, MFR has initiated its 2023 Christmas Basket campaign.
“There is a greater need,” stated Colleen Hill, executive director of MFR. “We have definitely seen an increase in the number of referrals and support throughout the year. And the need is increasing significantly every year, not just at Christmastime, due to the increased cost of food and transportation costs.”
“People are very generous and want to know at this time of the year how to support the Christmas basket campaign,” said Ms. Hill.
The Food Bank and Thrift Store has been providing emergency and seasonal food supports to the residents of Manitoulin district for over 35 years. Last year, thanks to the generosity of community members, businesses and organizations, MFR expectations were surpassed, said Ms. Hill. Over $75,000 was raised and put towards the cost of generating 1,046 baskets and gifts for families and individuals.
Each basket is tailored to the size of the family and includes a turkey or ham, a generous supply of seasonal food and other food products. In past years, baskets have also included gifts for all children and teens, as well as some winter apparel (hats, mittens, scarves) for adults and children.
Along with items for a holiday dinner and breakfast items, the Christmas baskets will have lots of staple dinner items like rice, canned soups and vegetables, said Vanessa Glasby, food security program supervisor at the family resource centre.
Ms. Glasby pointed out, “we have expanded our partnership with Farquhar’s Dairy for butter, and a pound of butter will be included in each Christmas hamper.”
“We hope to raise a minimum of $80,000 during this year’s Christmas basket campaign to meet increasing demands, as well as the increased cost of food and transportation,” said Ms. Hill. “All surplus funds from the campaign will be used to meet the food security needs in our community throughout the rest of the year.”
Vanessa Glasby said, “this year is unique because normally part of our focus for the food baskets is to include Wiikwemkoong Unceded Territory, but the (Amikook Seniors Centre) food bank has taken over this program there and will be providing the Christmas hampers to families and individuals in need there. We will focus our campaign on the rest of the island and Whitefish River.”
“We are estimating we will help about 800 families with Christmas baskets, based on referrals and requests,” said Ms. Glasby.
“Some of the items that are becoming a very popular request is peanut butter, cereal, pasta, canned pasta, tuna and chicken,” said Ms. Glasby. Special items like coffee, team, chocolate and sugar make the baskets extra special.
“Along with donations of food, monetary donations are also graciously accepted. We want to extend a big thank you to all those have who have made donations already,” said Ms. Hill.
Island police services will also be helping the MFR Christmas basket campaign by holding stuff the cruiser events in December.
“We will also have donation boxes set up in stores around the Island very soon,” said Ms. Glasby.
“There is greater need,” stated Colleen Hill, executive director of MFR, lasts week. “We have definitely seen an increase in the number of referrals and requests for support. And the need is increasing significantly every year.”
“And this is not just an urban or rural concern, we see a lot of food insecurity on the Island,” said Ms. Hill. “We have clients that have three part-time jobs and can’t make ends meet to pay rent or eat. And eating proper healthy food is linked directly to health. This is much more complex than a societal issue.”
Ms. Glasby explained, “last year our average numbers were 350-400 visits to the food bank per month (throughout the year), now it is closer to 400-500 visits per month. August was our biggest this year when we had over 500 visits and we are still at 450 plus visits per month. These are visits from some people who are employed full-time and pensioners. It is definitely not a case of just folks who are on social assistance.”
“We will be delivering the food baskets between December 18-22, packing them the week before,” said Ms. Glasby. “The baskets will be delivered to families and individuals from Meldrum Bay to Whitefish Falls and all points between. There are lots of drivers and agencies involved. Agency partnership is crucial.”
“We would like to thank all our community partners for all their help and contribution to the Christmas Basket campaign,” said Ms. Hill. “It would be impossible to do this without all of them.”
If you would like to contribute to the Christmas Food Basket Campaign, monetary donations are greatly appreciated and can be mailed to the MFR office. Please make cheques payable to ‘Manitoulin Family Resources’ and indicate on the memo line “Christmas Basket Campaign 2023.”
If you prefer an online option, you can e-transfer your contribution to finance@mfresources.net or donate via Canadahelps.org by visiting www.mfresources.net and clicking on the ‘Donate Now’ at the top right of the page to link you to the MFR donation site. Please follow the instructions, make sure you select ‘Christmas Food Hamper Drive’ in the drop-down window under ‘Apply your donation to a specific fund set up by this charity.’ Tax receipts will be issued for financial donations over $10.
In the case of non-monetary/food donations, please call the Food Security program Supervisor at 705-368-3400, extension 242, to arrange for donation drop-offs.
