Be An Angel: Food bank bringing peace of mind in stressful times

Photo: Contributed

Castanet is proud to partner with the Central Okanagan Food Bank on their 27th annual 'Be An Angel' campaign. Over the next month, we will be sharing the stories of local residents helped by the organization.

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Faith has always highly valued education, which is why she and her husband, Sam, chose to immigrate to Canada four years ago so she could finish her post-secondary education. They resided in Vancouver until Faith graduated, but quickly sought out a more affordable community. Eventually, they settled in Kelowna just weeks before the pandemic was announced, and five months before their first child would be born.

Building a new life in the Okanagan proved to be difficult, especially during the early days of the pandemic when jobs were scarce and work hours reduced. The new parents were faced with the difficult decision of paying rent and a vehicle or putting food on the table. One of Sam’s coworkers recognized the family’s struggles and encouraged them to visit the Central Okanagan Food Bank.

Having welcomed their second child in March 2022, the family participates in the Tiny Bundles Program which supports new and expecting mothers with additional weekly nutritional supplements on top of their monthly hamper. This includes fresh fruit and vegetables, milk, eggs, and cheese. Once the baby arrives clients are provided with diapers, wipes, baby food and formula.

Faith and Sam are extremely grateful for the wonderful experience that they had at the food bank. It’s hard for them to fathom how they would have survived the past two years without the help of the food bank. The support they have received has given them peace of mind during stressful times.

You can Be an Angel three ways:

• Donate online at www.cofoodbank.com/BeAnAngel
• Call the Central Okanagan Food Bank at 250-763-7161 to donate by credit card, or
• Drop by the Central Okanagan Food Bank office 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday to Friday to donate by cash, cheque, debit, or credit card

Donations are accepted Dec 1st until Dec 31st. The Thomas Alan Budd Foundation will match all individual donations by 20% (excluding corporate, foundations and estate gifts) up to a maximum.