The Tofield/Ryley and Area food bank held their annual general meeting on Monday, March 10 at the food bank. The food bank saw 25 new clients in 2024, and Board Chair Dawn Arnold noted that the food bank has seen a higher increase in individuals using the food bank than in families.
“As you know, 2024 has been increase after increase, whether it’s food, rent, utilities, it doesn’t matter. And we are seeing it at the food bank. We are seeing an increase in the amount of people who are not able to make it,” she said.
“By the end of December 2022, which we thought was our banner year, we had provided 443 hampers for 1,157 souls. By the end of December 2023, it was down to 396 hampers and about 1,035 people that didn’t go hungry. By the end of December 2024, 462 hampers, and that’s 19 hampers more than we did in our banner year, for 1,138 souls. When you look at 462 hampers for 1,138 compared to 443 for 1,157, that tells you that we’re getting a lot more singles or two person families, rather than big families,” Arnold said.
Treasurer Debbie Ewert provided a breakdown of the financial report and expressed gratitude for the contributions to the food bank.
“I’m very thankful for the community that we’re in. We have had a very generous community from all areas, including companies, churches, individuals, sports, and other groups. We get money from all sorts of sources,” Ewert said.
