With Halloween just around the corner, locals can soon expect the faint knock of costumed children looking for treats. However, the Jasper Food Bank is encouraging residents to give more than just candy this year as it gets ready for its annual door-to-door food drive.
In collaboration with Jasper Junior/Senior High School, Community Outreach Services (COS) and the Jasper Rotary Club, the food bank will be sending volunteers throughout Jasper, on Oct. 31, to collect non-perishable items.
The food drive will run from 5-7:30 p.m. The food bank鈥攍ocated in the basement of St. Mary and St. George Anglican Church Hall鈥攚ill also be open at 6:30 p.m. for those who would like to drop off donations.
鈥淲e hope this will overflow our shelves, which it usually does,鈥� said Jasper Food Bank president Patrick Mooney, adding that the annual food drive is one of the most successful collection events of the year.
鈥淔ood banks are our reality now. We have to keep them going because there are people who are working full-time that can鈥檛 afford to eat in this town鈥攊t鈥檚 unfortunate, but that鈥檚 the way it is.鈥�
While the usual donated items like macaroni and canned goods are appreciated, Mooney said he would like to see locals donate more nutritious foods.
鈥淒on鈥檛 be afraid to send down some organic soups or diabetic friendly food,鈥� Mooney said. 鈥淔ood banks in Canada first opened in the 1980s and since then nothing has really changed. We鈥檙e still getting a lot of unattractive food items, but we鈥檙e trying to turn it up a notch and offer more nutritious and balanced food items.鈥�
In the summer, the food bank also harvests some of its own produce and receives other fresh products from farmers in McBride.
On average, the Jasper Food Bank鈥攚hich operates every Thursday鈥攃aters to about 500 people annually, a number that has remained the same for several years, according to Mooney.
鈥淚t鈥檚 very utilized鈥攋ust think of all the single parents trying to get by on hospitality wages. Even for people who make decent wages it鈥檚 still sometimes not enough to put food on the table,鈥� Mooney said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e also a little unique here because not only do we have our year-long residents coming out of necessity, but we also have this shadow population that is always coming and going.鈥�
On top of private donations from residents, both grocery stores in town also donate to the food bank.
TGP has a food collection box to collect non-perishable food items. There is also a collection box at the Jasper Activity Centre.
At Robinsons Foods, people can donate money through the Alberta Shares program. The provincial program offers customers the opportunity to donate $2 when they go through the checkout.
That money is then added to an account at Robinsons, which the Jasper Food Bank Society can use to buy items.
As the food bank continues to cater to the community, Mooney said aside from bringing in more nutritious options, it hopes to end the stigma of having to use a food bank.
鈥淥ur pantry used to be closed and people had to wait outside to be handed a bag filled with food and whatever was in the bag was what they got. Taking the decision away from clients really adds to that stigma,鈥� Mooney said. 鈥淲hat we do now is let clients go in and make their own decisions.
鈥淧utting the decision into their hands makes them feel a little more dignified.鈥�
For the upcoming food drive, Mooney said the food bank is still looking for volunteers to go door-to-door. Anyone interested can sign-up by calling Mooney at 780-852-4909 or by showing up at the food bank the evening of the event.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a wonderful opportunity to engage teenagers and show them the value of serving the common good and giving back to the community. We also like to see families pitch in,鈥� Mooney said. 鈥淚f we have enough cars and volunteers we can blitz this whole town in about two hours.鈥�
Kayla Byrne
[email protected]
