Calgary Food Bank hosts citywide food drive as ‘inflationary environment’ takes ‘havoc’ – Calgary
Food security is one of the most pressing issues of our time. This weekend, the Calgary Food Bank hopes to enlist the support of 400,000 households across the city to help families put food on the table.
“This inflationary environment is taking a toll on Calgarians,” said Betty Jo Kaiser of the Food Bank. “We all know that grocery bills have continued to rise.
“We are seeing an unprecedented demand for food a*sistance at the Calgary Food Bank.”
This is why white bags were scattered throughout the city and left in front of hundreds of thousands of people. This could not be done without the help of 8,000 dedicated volunteers, like the Giannakos family who live in Mahogany. Over two nights, they handed out bags to 800 people – 400 with their local church group, another 400 just with the family of six.
“There are definitely families in this neighborhood and all neighborhoods in Calgary that need help from the food bank,” said Father Mitz Giannakos.
In fact, he said, when he and his wife were newlyweds, they too depended on it.
“We had to go to the food bank and we benefited from the support they gave us. So I think as Calgarians, if you have a little bit of surplus and you have time to fill the bag, you have no idea the impact that your help is making.
As a family, it helped teach her children, ages five to 17, the importance of giving back, serving your community and being grateful.
“Gratitude,” said Danea, her 13-year-old daughter, describing the feeling she gets from helping. “Of what we have that we don’t need to get food from and that we have enough money to get our own food from.”
Mom Charity said she noticed grocery bills increasing in order to feed her large family, but admitted there were many more people who were in a worse situation than her.
“It’s increasing every day I go shopping,” she said.
“I was at the grocery store the other day and there was a gentleman counting the deposit on the water bottles he was buying, because he was so tight.”
The family has been doing this volunteer work together for almost 20 years.
“This family has been out every year since almost the very beginning, and it completely warms our hearts,” Kaiser said.
How can I help you?
Fill this bag with non-perishable food items and drop it off at the front door before 10 a.m. on Saturday, September 23. Volunteers will return to collect it and bring it to a central location where the food will be dispersed throughout the city. .
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