Abegweit First Nation shatters records with 12 truckloads of food donated to Charlottetown food bank

November 1, 2023

2 3 minutes read

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CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — Abegweit First Nation has damaged its personal document by donating greater than 10,500 kilos of meals to the Higher Room Meals Financial institution in Charlottetown.

Every year, the neighborhood hosts a free haunted home occasion for Halloween referred to as Chief’s Haunted Barn, the place guests are inspired to deliver non-perishable meals gadgets for donation to the meals financial institution.

Final 12 months, the neighborhood donated seven truckloads of meals, totalling 4,500 kilos.

Chief Junior Gould stated this 12 months, his neighborhood surpassed that with 12 truckloads of meals, delivered to the meals financial institution on Oct. 31.

“We set a purpose to beat final 12 months’s document. We beat it, we doubled it,” he instructed SaltWire in an interview Oct. 31. “We’re simply very proud of the donation we made.”

‘Fairly wonderful sight’

Mike MacDonald, government director of the Higher Room Meals Financial institution, stated he was amazed to see a dozen truckloads of meals arriving on the meals financial institution.

“It was fairly a sight to be sincere with you,” MacDonald stated. “We had a site visitors jam out again there with the quantity of automobiles that they’d loaded up and stuff. So it was a reasonably wonderful sight.”

Mike MacDonald, executive director of the Upper Room Food Bank, stands besides just a small part of the more than 10,500 pounds of food donations given by the Abegweit First Nation to the food bank. - Thinh Nguyen/SaltWire — Mike MacDonald, government director of the Higher Room Meals Financial institution, stands in addition to only a small a part of the greater than 10,500 kilos of meals donations given by the Abegweit First Nation to the meals financial institution. – Thinh Nguyen/SaltWire

The 12 truckloads of meals donations embody numerous non-perishable gadgets like cereals, pastas, rice and canned items.

The quantity is so massive it would require a big period of time for the meals financial institution employees to kind by way of this stuff and place them on the cabinets, MacDonald stated.

“Meals financial institution utilization throughout P.E.I. has elevated considerably. We’re up about 27 per cent over final 12 months. And it’s due to assist from our neighborhood, very very similar to the Chief’s Haunted Barn, we couldn’t do it with out assist.”

Proactive neighborhood

Gould stated he and his crew of greater than 30 folks had been up early on Halloween to load the meals donations onto their 12 vehicles earlier than making their method to the Charlottetown meals financial institution.

The food donations are so large it will take quite a while for the food bank staff to sort and place these items on the shelves. - Thinh Nguyen/SaltWire — The meals donations are so massive it would take fairly some time for the meals financial institution employees to kind and place this stuff on the cabinets. – Thinh Nguyen/SaltWire

This complete operation really embodied Abegweit First Nation’s spirit, the chief stated.

“We’re a well-organized neighborhood. We’re doers. We’re not simply reacting to conditions, we’re a proactive neighborhood,” stated Gould. “Everyone locally at one time limit wanted help and stuff like that, and we do not know what the long run will maintain for us.

“So, we might similar to to suppose that if we may do it for another person, another person would do it for us and we’d get again. So, it was straightforward to get all people up early and rally the troops and every part.”

Members of the Abegweit First Nation community load non-perishable food items onto a truck, preparing to deliver them to the Upper Room Food Bank in Charlottetown. - Contributed — Members of the Abegweit First Nation neighborhood load non-perishable meals gadgets onto a truck, getting ready to ship them to the Higher Room Meals Financial institution in Charlottetown. – Contributed

MacDonald stated the meals donations would supply important help to many Islanders.

Meals Banks Canada report

Not solely in P.E.I. however throughout the nation, increasingly more individuals are turning to meals banks. In keeping with a current report from Meals Banks Canada, this 12 months witnessed a surge in meals financial institution utilization as a result of rising value of residing, marking the best degree of want since 1989 when the survey started.

The annual HungerCount report, primarily based on surveys despatched to meals safety organizations, revealed that in March 2023 alone, practically two million folks, together with extra employed people than ever earlier than, sought help from meals banks.

“If you happen to got here in right here on the day that we’re open, you’d see lineups of individuals. Simply means too many individuals occur to make use of our providers – folks which can be no completely different than both our neighbours or our relations,” MacDonald stated. “it is heartwarming to know that we get the assist of our neighborhood and to have the ability to serve our neighbours.”

The group of more than 30 people from Abegweit First Nation enjoys a celebration at a restaurant after delivering more than 10,500 pounds of food to the Upper Room Food Bank in Charlottetown on Oct. 31. - Thinh Nguyen/SaltWire — The group of greater than 30 folks from Abegweit First Nation enjoys a celebration at a restaurant after delivering greater than 10,500 kilos of meals to the Higher Room Meals Financial institution in Charlottetown on Oct. 31. – Thinh Nguyen/SaltWire

Thinh Nguyen is a reporter with SaltWire in Prince Edward Island. He might be reached by e mail at [email protected] and adopted on X @thinhnguyen4291.

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