The Rhineland & Area Food Bank was bustling with activity Oct. 2 as dozens of local youth collected and delivered non-perishable food items for the FCC Drive Away Hunger food drive.
Around 80 teenagers from various local church groups including Altona Bergthaler, Altona EMMC, Gospel Family Church, Rosetown Church, South Park Mennonite Brethren and Altona Youth for Christ dedicated their evening to this cause.
“The response was amazing,” said long-time volunteer Ang Stoesz. “Richard Bage organized all the youth groups, and kids from Gretna and Neubergthal also helped. It was just awesome to see all those young people participating.”
Volunteers had a busy night as well with unpacking all the food and stocking shelves that had been nearly empty earlier that day, and residents were notified in advance about what items to donate.
“The list was good. We did get some extra things, but that’s okay; we’ll put those out too. We had a lot of financial donations, which is great because we buy a lot of our stock. It is the financial donations that carry us throughout the year. We get a special rate for our purchases, and people who donate financially get a tax-deductible receipt, so it’s just a win-win situation.”
The drive resulted in the collection of 4,300 lbs of food and over $4,000 in cash and cheques with more still to come.
Gazing at the loaded shelves, Stoesz anticipated they wouldn’t be full for long.
“People need food. We average about 60 clients a week right now including single folks, couples and whole households, from all walks of life and different sizes of families.”
The food bank also benefits from a list of about 40 volunteers.
“Every Monday, we have five volunteers in the morning and a different group in the evening, and then we rotate throughout the month. It’s a lot of work, and we could not do this without them.”
In addition to community donations, they also receive contributions from Co-op and IGA through the Second Harvest program.
“These are food items that are close to their best before date. If it’s meat, they freeze it and bring it to us.
Reflecting on the food bank’s history, Stoesz noted they started planning it in 1996, and they opened in 1997 in the Bergthaler Church basement.
“I worked the first day it was open, and it’s still going strong. We started with two clients, and it’s fair to say we have quite a few more now.”
The new location on Centre Ave has been able to accommodate that growth, she added.
“We needed a larger space that was accessible and where people could spread out a little bit. This location has been awesome.”
Stoesz said they are deeply grateful to everyone who participated.
“It’s quite a thing to watch. It is both amazing and heartwarming to witness so many of our youth giving their time in such a meaningful way. We are grateful to them and the leaders for helping to make this happen.”
She also added a thank you to all the volunteers who showed up to help carry, sort and stock, and she expressed gratitude for the support the community has shown year after year.
“There are hardly words to describe how generous our area is,” she concluded.
