Hundreds of families will have a little more to be thankful for this Thanksgiving.
On Saturday, the fourth annual B.C. Thanksgiving Food Drive collected close to 40,000 pounds of donated items in the Central Okanagan.
Some 1,200 volunteers fanned out across Kelowna and West Kelowna to collect the food in the largest single-day food drive the Kelowna Community Food Bank is part of.
Gary and Debbie Morris are co-organizers of the event. Although the total collected was down slightly from last year, they are still pleased with the amount.
“We would like to give a big thank-you to everyone who was involved in this,” said Gary.
Debbie said many people contacted them to ask how they could be part of the drive.
“People wanted to get involved,” she said.
Lenetta Parry, food bank executive director, was amazed as load after load of food was brought to the downtown Kelowna facility.
“I’m overwhelmed by the generosity of this community, both in Kelowna and the Westside,” she said.
Typically, donations drop in the summer as people are away or busy, but Parry said the request for assistance typically goes up at Thanksgiving.
“Our shelves are bare and we really need this food to get us through the holiday. Thanksgiving is a time when we see an influx of families,” she said, adding the next big influx of food will not be until Christmas.
In Kelowna, the food bank helps up to 3,500 people a month. In West Kelowna, 800 people visit the food bank monthly.
Parry reminds people they can drop off food at the food bank on Ellis Street in Kelowna any time during regular business hours Monday through Friday.
Some of the most-needed items are pasta, pasta sauces, canned meats, canned fruits and canned vegetables.
Baby basics, such as diapers, wipes, formula and baby food, are always in demand.
“We serve about 100 babies a week,” said Parry.
For more information about the food bank, go to kelownafoodbank.com.
