Last weekend was a smash hit for collecting food around Calgary, with hundreds of thousands of citizens lending a hand.
The Calgary Food Bank’s 22nd annual city-wide food drive collected donations from more than 300,000 Calgarians, helping restock the food bank’s shelves as demand grows.
The drive raised more than 475,000 pounds of food and collected a little more than $194,000. The latter is made up of $169,087 in citizen donations and a matching $25,000 gift from the Pareto Foundation.
“Every filled bag represents a neighbour helping a neighbour. The City-Wide Food Drive is one of Calgary’s most powerful examples of what can happen when a community comes together,” said Melissa From, President and CEO of the Calgary Food Bank.
From also thanked the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who helped with the event, and the more than 8,000 volunteers who participated around Calgary.
Anyone who was unable to support the food drive over the weekend can still do so via the virtual campaign, which is ongoing.
“We know that many donations are still making their way to us, and every contribution matters,” said From.
“Whether someone filled a bag, volunteered their time, or made an online donation, they have helped make food more accessible for people in our community.”
Donations are also still being accepted at the food donation bins at the front of local grocery stores.
The Calgary Food Bank is providing food and other necessities to more than 15,000 Calgarians each week, with more than 900 emergency food hampers being put out each day.
Last year, there were more than 238,000 emergency food hampers provided to Calgarians in need.
