Stuff-A-Bus campaign helping food bank get through the holidays
The annual Stuff-A-Bus campaign is running this weekend, collecting food and monetary donations for the Edmonton Food Bank.
As the festive season begins, the food bank is counting on this fundraiser to help see them through a busy time of year.
The campaign started on Nov. 23, with peace officers collecting donations to fill their cruisers.
On Saturday, ETS buses were parked outside every Save-On-Foods store in Edmonton, trying to collect enough food to fill the buses.
"We're doing this because any city, of any size, depends on empathy and helping one another out, so this is why we're happy to support Edmonton's food bank," said Peter Haight, a customer engagement associate with Edmonton Transit.
"The need for donations never goes away. Hunger is always there… hunger never takes a holiday so that's why it's important for us to keep doing this campaign year after year."
On average, the Edmonton Food Bank is serving just over 30,000 people a month currently, according to a spokesperson.
"That is more than the equivalent population of Leduc just through one program, that's the hamper program that is serving individuals and families within our community," said Tamisan Bencz-Knight, with the food bank.
"Somebody might think, 'Oh, it's only one can of beans, or one jar of peanut butter,' but when you pool that together with all the stores, all the donations, everybody giving what they can, it fills a bus and that's what's important."
The food bank also provides meals and snacks to over 300 different organizations like soup kitchens, shelters and schools.
"We are the first to feel the economic pinch and we will be the last to recover," said Bencz-Knight.
"When people have to make decisions (between) paying the rent or feeding their children and they're coming to the food bank to make those decisions… that's hard, that should not be happening."
Traditionally, the Stuff-A-Bus campaign is a large fundraiser, bringing in around 20,000 kg of food. Monetary donations are also important to the food bank, which is expecting to have spent $3 million on food purchases for 2022 alone by the end of the year.
"Just to make sure we can have those hampers, so we can have those different culturally specific items… that's a lot and that's just from us, one major food bank in Alberta," said Bencz-Knight.
Currently, the Edmonton Food Bank is seeing food leave the warehouse faster than donations can come in, which is where the monetary donations help fill the gap.
"I'm just happy that people are giving at this time, because I know there are challenges with inflation, I know even myself going to grocery stores, I'm making different decisions with my own personal purchases. We're all being impacted by this."
On Sunday, donations are being collected at the Clareview LRT station, food can be dropped off at the festively-decorated LRT car. Save-On-Foods is still collecting cash and food donations, money can also be donated through the food bank's website or by texting FEEDYEG to 20222.
For people looking for other ways to donate, the food bank is also looking for volunteers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
MPP Sarah Jama asked to leave Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
MPP Sarah Jama was asked to leave the Legislative Assembly of Ontario by House Speaker Ted Arnott on Thursday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment which has been banned at Queen’s Park.
Mountain guide dies after falling into a crevasse in Banff National Park
A man who fell into a crevasse while leading a backcountry ski group deep in the Canadian Rockies has died.
2 teens charged in Halifax homicide: police
Two teenagers have been charged with second-degree murder in connection to an alleged homicide near the Halifax Shopping Centre earlier this week.
'Deep ignorance': Calls for Manitoba trustee to resign sparked after comments about Indigenous people and reconciliation
A rural Manitoba school trustee is facing calls to resign over comments he made about Indigenous people and residential schools earlier this week.
ByteDance prefers TikTok shutdown in U.S. if legal options fail, Reuters sources say
TikTok owner ByteDance would prefer to shut down its loss-making app rather than sell it if the Chinese company exhausts all legal options to fight legislation to ban the platform from app stores in the U.S., four sources said.
12-year-old hippo in Japan raised as a male discovered to be a female
When Gen-chan arrived at a zoo in Japan in 2017, no one questioned whether the then-five-year-old hippopotamus was a boy. Seven years later, zoo staff made a surprising discovery: Gen-chan, now 12, was female.
Here's why Harvey Weinstein's New York rape conviction was tossed and what happens next
Here's what you need to know about why movie mogul Harvey Weinstein's rape conviction was thrown out and what happens next.
Improve balance and build core strength with this exercise
When it comes to cardiovascular fitness, you may tend to focus on activities that move you forward, such as walking, running and cycling.
Legendary hockey broadcaster Bob Cole dies at 90: CBC
Bob Cole, a welcome voice for Canadian hockey fans for a half-century, has died at the age of 90. Cole died Wednesday night in St. John's, N.L., surrounded by his family, his daughter, Megan Cole, told the CBC.