The Jasper Food Bank has found itself in dire straights,聽its shelves bare.
Minutes before opening up the doors on May 18, Rachel Heckbert, the food bank鈥檚 new volunteer coordinator, had to make an emergency $1,500 grocery run just to stock the shelves.
鈥淲e are in desperate need for food and cash donations,鈥� said Heckbert, who is coordinating things in president聽Patrick Mooney's absence.
鈥淚nstead of two cans of baked beans everyone is getting one can of baked beans right now. We just ordered more because there were nine cans left.鈥�
She said the number of people using the food bank has surged this year with 27 hampers made on May 11. Usually the food bank makes around a dozen hampers each week during the busy summer season and caters to about 500 people annually.
So far this year the food bank has assisted 193 people, including 25 children. It has also provided family food hampers for 154 households since Jan. 1, 57 more homes than this time last year.
On top of that the food bank society has only about $3,000 left in the bank and less than the cost of one hamper in its account at Robinsons Foods, where shoppers can donate at the till.
Even the volunteer call list has dwindled to fewer than a half-dozen names.
鈥淯sage is only going up every week,鈥� Heckbert said, adding the food bank went through 20 loaves of bread in just one week.
She said part of the problem is that food costs are rising.
鈥淲hile the donations that we do get are great, it鈥檚 not sustaining itself,鈥� Heckbert said, adding she鈥檚 going to the Food Banks Alberta Association鈥檚 annual general meeting next week on her own dime.
鈥淲e have to purchase items that go in our regular hamper so that we are able to give out the same food we normally do,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat on its own is not very self-sustaining. We can鈥檛 keep doing that and the next major food drive is not until Halloween.鈥�
As a stop gap measure Heckbert said she intends to approach Alberta Shares, a provincial program that helps food banks in times of need.
She has also approach the Hinton Food Bank, which is run by local Rotary Club, to try and figure out how to make a more sustainable model.
鈥淭hey haven鈥檛 even gone through their Christmas donations yet, where ours was gone a long time ago,鈥� said Heckbert. 鈥淲e need help.鈥�
A large part of Hinton鈥檚 success has been its ability to partner with large corporations, such as Walmart, and develop sponsorship agreements to help pay rent and other overhead costs.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a lot different than here so we鈥檙e going to be looking to make some changes, but Rome wasn鈥檛 built in a day.鈥�
Provincially, nearly 80,000 people were assisted in Alberta in 2016, a 17 per cent increase from 2015-2016. Nationally, 863,000 people used a food bank in 2016, a 1.3 per cent increase year-over-year.
The only reprieve on the horizon is a GIC worth $2,000, but that doesn鈥檛 mature until December.
Otherwise the food bank will have to try and hold on until its next major food drive during Halloween.
In the meantime there are several ways people can help.
Private donations can be made by contacting the food bank through its Facebook page: .
People can also donate at Robinsons Food by scanning a $2 barcode at the grocery store in support of the Alberta Food Society, which puts the money directly in the local food bank鈥檚 account at the store. Loyalty points can also be donated.
The food bank is also one of the charities you can choose to donate to at TGP.
There are also food collection bins at TGP and the Jasper Activity Centre, but check the best before date. The rules are pretty strict when it comes to handing out perishables in Canada. Even cans have an expiry date.
鈥淭here are certain things we can give out after its best before date according to Food Canada guidelines but it鈥檚 very important to check best before dates before you donate,鈥� said Heckbert.
The food bank is located in the basement of St. Mary and St. George Anglican Church and is open on Thursdays at 6 p.m.
