This last Tuesday we heard from Susan Padget, the Communications and Resource Development officer with the Edmonton Food Bank, pictured. The Edmonton Food Bank was the first Food Bank in Canada, when it was founded in 1981. At the time, they could not officially call it a bank, due to government legislation, so their official name to this day is the Edmonton Gleaners Association.
They serve about twenty two thousand people per month in the Edmonton area. They do not receive any regular government funding and rely on the public to donate both time and food, and they are a registered charity. Last year volunteers put in over seventy-six thousand hours, the equivalent of forty full time staff. They have volunteers coming in six days a week. They also rely on the public for donations of dry goods and corporate donors for donations of fresh food. They do purchase some items like eggs as well. They will also gladly accept home garden produce as long as it is fresh and in good condition. The hampers they distribute usually contain tinned meat, vegetables, soup, pasta sauce and fruit, dried goods such as pasta along with fresh vegetables, fruit, eggs and bread. They re designed to last about five days.
They have two main warehouses in Edmonton, just west of the old municipal airport. They have eight to ten drivers who pick up and deliver hampers and meals to over fifty local depots around the city, where individuals can pick them up.
She spoke to us about the many volunteer opportunities with the Food Bank. These include working at various events accepting donations and thanking people, helping to sort incoming donations and checking freshness at the warehouse, picking and packing items for hampers, loading trucks, accepting calls for information from clients, and various other warehouse duties. Many of their volunteers come with a friend. The benefits also include making new friends, and the opportunity to do lots of walking,
We can find out more about how to volunteer our time by either phoning or checking out their website. https://www.edmontonsfoodbank.com/
