Target Hunger in need of volunteers to help support city wide food drive
By Steffanie Costigan - Lethbridge Herald Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on May 24, 2023.
Herald photo by Steffanie Costigan
Darren Babin, operations manager of Lethbridge Food Bank, prepares yellow donation bags for Target Hunger at the Lethbridge Food Bank.Steffanie Costigan
LOCAL JOURNALISM INITIATIVE REPORTER
With inflation getting worse and food prices increasing the hard reality for some families having to face on a daily basis is turning to the food bank for assistance.
The Lethbridge food banks are experiencing a shortage of volunteers for the upcoming Target Hunger event. June 10 is the set date for the annual Target Hunger event, which supports both the Interfaith and Lethbridge food banks.
Mac Nichol, executive director of Lethbridge Food Bank, said Target Hunger is a big event which helps many families in the community and the increase of families needing assistance.
“Target Hunger is easily the biggest food drive for all of the food banks and down this end of year, we still have all the clients to feed. And we have definitely seen our numbers rising that way. But most people like to support our food banks during the Christmas season and do events and things that way. So by the time we roll around to June, our stock is starting to get a little bit thin. And this is a great way for our community to come in and help support us through that summer month,” said Nichol.
The goal for Target Hunger this year is to reach 60,000 pounds of food. Last year the event was successful in reaching the same goal. Nichol shared the need for volunteers, and the job volunteers would be assisting with.
“You come to one of the food banks to get the yellow bags the week before and go deliver them sometime during the week of the fourth to the ninth, to deliver the bags, and then you go out again on Saturday the 10th and pick up those bags and then come deliver them… The recruitment of volunteers are going on right now.”
Individuals interested in volunteering to help with the Target Hunger event can visit to http://www.targethungerlethbridge.ca for information on how to volunteer there. Nichol noted the food bank is not a handout but a source of helping families get back on track.
“We’ve had a lot of clients come through, get that food support, and then get linked up to those other resources and then help work themselves out of poverty. So we really try and focus on being an organization that are a hand up, not just a handout, but to help them get to the goals that they need to move away from.”
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