ST. JOHN'S, N.L. — In a matter of days, a simple plea by Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Janice Fitzgerald swelled the coffers of the Community Food Sharing Association.
On Feb. 15, during the COVID-19 briefing, Fitzgerald asked the public to not send her gifts, but to donate to food banks.
Since that time and up until Friday, almost $30,000 was donated to the association — 15 times the monetary donation the association would normally get in the same time span.
Community Food Sharing Association general manager Eg Walters said most of those donations were $5, $10 and $20.
“We saw a flurry of activity on our website,” Walters said of Fitzgerald’s request.
“I must say the response that the food banks got from (the request of) Dr. Fitzgerald was phenomenal.”
He said local food banks around the province no doubt received a boost, and it shows the generosity of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians.
Any food that comes in from the public is put in quarantine for a few days and the association brings in tractor-trailer loads from central Canada, as well as makes purchases from local wholesalers.
Walters said the association is meeting demand.
“We’re in a good position,” he said.
There’s help coming from businesses, service clubs and other organizations, Walters noted.
Following the Feb. 10 announcement of the temporary suspension of in-class instruction at schools throughout the province due to the recent COVID-19 outbreak, the School Lunch Association moved to ensure perishable food items and milk were distributed in the community.
The result was a co-ordinated effort from School Lunch Association staff, the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District and the School Milk Foundation in the collection and distribution of 442 crates of milk, which contained 21,263 lunch-size (250-ml) cartons.
Over the course of two weeks, the milk was delivered to more than 20 food banks with the assistance of the Community Food Sharing Association.
In addition, more than 15 non-profit and community-based organizations, as well as frontline health-care workers at the Mount Pearl COVID-19 testing site, were recipients of the sizable donation of milk.
Around the province volunteer organizations are using creative ways to raise money for food banks.
In Grand Falls-Windsor, for instance, the Corduroy Brook Enhancement Association (CBEA) is holding the #FoodWalkChallengeNL, which will help stock local food banks with non-perishable items. The initiative will run until Sunday, March 7.
“Food banks are experiencing a shortage of supplies due to the increased demand of families in need of assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic,” CBEA executive director Barry Manuel stated in a news release.
“During these times, it is imperative that we come together for the good of the community, and the #FoodWalkChallengeNL is a positive, proactive reaction to a clear community need.”
Corduroy Brook Trail users, along with any member of the public, can donate non-perishable food items at the main trailhead next to the Corduroy Brook Nature Centre, located at 2 Conservation Pl., in Grand Falls-Windsor.
