While summer for many means enjoying time off at the cottage or going away on special vacations, the East Wellington Community Services (EWCS) food bank gets no chance for a vacation.
The need for the food bank is growing, and between January to June this year, the food bank has distributed over 24,000 pounds of food with a value of more than $60,000.
There are shelves with big gaps for many basic and essential food items.
“We are in need of help so we can continue to support the more than 100 families who rely this program. Summer is always such a hard time for the food bank,” says Alyssa Cunningham, care coordinator with EWCS.
“Fresh produce donations are always welcome from those in our community who may have some extra in their gardens. It gets harder to keep the dry good staples on the shelves as donations tend to decline.
“It is also becoming a struggle to be able to provide our food bank families with food support for things like dairy or meat products.”
If you are able to help, either by donating food or providing gift cards to local area grocery stores, it would be appreciated.
Items that are needed now include canned pasta, dry pasta, pasta sauce, canned stews, canned meats like tuna, turkey, chicken or salmon, granola bars, shampoo, Kleenex, deodorant, canned fruit (peaches, pears, fruit salad), canned vegetables, soup, rice, coffee or tea, hearty soups, jam and non-sugar cereals such as Shreddies, Corn Flakes, Cheerios and Rice Krispies.
Gluten-free products for clients with food allergies are also greatly appreciated.
For more information on how to help feed the food bank with food donations, contact Alyssa (519-833-9696) at the Erin food bank location or Barb (519-856-2113) at the Rockwood location.
