Duane Hicks
Local food banks and hamper programs are seeing a greater need in the community—and an equally greater support from the public—this holiday season.
Jill Pernsky, community ministries manager for the local Salvation Army, said at least 200 hampers were given out to district families in need this Christmas, which was about 50 more than last year.
“I think the mill [closure] has something to do with it,” she noted.
“The mill affects every job, of course, not must the mill jobs,” Pernsky added.
“People are going through tough times.”
Fortunately, the community has stepped up the plate, going “way above” its usual level of support this season.
“It’s amazing,” said Pernsky. “It’s wonderful; we’re so thankful.”
She noted support has taken the form of everything from events like the recent “Stuff-a-Cruiser” and B•93.1 The Border’s “Burst A Bus” during the “Festival of Frost” to Christmas kettle donations and food drives done by area schools and churches.
“Everyone seems to be pitching in,” Pernsky remarked.
Danielle Spuzak, the Homelessness Outreach Worker at the United Native Friendship Centre here, agreed the need is more than last year, but so is the public’s generosity.
“We’ve been super steady,” she noted.
“This is a stressful time of year for a lot of families and we’ve definitely seen an increase in people that are in need.”
Spuzak said UNFC is helping 15 families through its “Adopt-a-Family” program—more than double the seven last year.
“The community support has been huge,” she lauded.
“It’s amazing, especially with the mill closure and all that sort of stuff, that there’s huge community support,” Spuzak added, noting new sponsors have included New Gold and the Northwest Catholic District School Board.
“St. Francis is quite an amazing school because this year, the kids at the school, on their own, came up with the idea of doing ‘Operation Christmas,’” she remarked.
“But instead of doing shoeboxes for kids overseas, they actually did shoeboxes for the ‘Adopt-a-Family’ families’ kids.
“Even the kids are being involved and we haven’t seen that before,” she noted.
“It’s quite amazing that there’s so much.”
Spuzak said UNFC program workers identify families in need and refer them for a hamper, with the UNFC then putting out a call for agencies to sponsor them.
There are criteria, such as if people are low-income, single parents, or working poor, and whether they are attending programming to try to better their lives.
“We want to help those who are trying to help themselves, too,” reasoned Spuzak.
She also noted there is communication between the UNFC, Sunset Country Métis, and the local Salvation Army as to who is getting hampers so that no family can apply for more than one.
“We were able to help out a lot of families this year, which is really nice,” Spuzak enthused.
“It’s a good feeling to see kids and their families be happy at Christmas.”
Spuzak said the UNFC also has benefitted greatly from recent donations, in particular a share of the bounty from “Stuff-a-Cruiser,” which took place Dec. 13 here.
“This year, especially, I was quite surprised and pleased with the stuff that we got from ‘Stuff-a-Cruiser,’” she admitted.
“Last year it was good, but it didn’t quite fill our food bank,” she noted. “And this year, our food bank is completely stocked.
“It’s so funny because when I think about how our economy is doing, it’s just amazing that there’s so much community support,” Spuzak said.
Anne-Marie Armstrong, with the Sunset Country Métis health branch, said that between their three healing and wellness programs, they gave out 15 Christmas hampers, which included “Healthy Living” food boxes and non-perishable items.
“This number does not reflect the number of people who come in to use our food bank on a regular basis throughout the year,” she noted.
“We have seen an increase in numbers over the year.”
Armstrong said “Stuff-a-Cruiser” helps to get them through the months following the Christmas season.
“But we also have a church group and one individual from our community who donate food to our food bank on a regular basis,” she added.
Armstrong said food bank is open Mondays from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., and can be accessed once a month.
“We serve anyone who walks in our door, but we do complete an intake and require identification to confirm address and number of people in the home,” she explained.
“Our programs also support families and individuals within the district by providing friendly visits, education, and support, and many of these access our food bank as they are struggling financially,” Armstrong added.
“We also encourage all who access our food bank to become involved in the ‘Healthy Living’ food box program.”
