WE Volunteer Now and My Volunteering at the Daily Bread Food Bank

April 10^th – 16^th is National Volunteer Week and it is a week that I am proud to honour. Across Canada more than 12 million of us are engaged in volunteering more than 2 billion hours throughout the year . Volunteerism is something that I am passionate about because I believe that we all have something to give and volunteering is a great way to get involved, take a stand, and make a difference. To make this week really stand out, Free The Children is launching a new campaign this year, WE Volunteer Now, which is a great way to join with others to support needs in our local community.

I recently had the opportunity spend a day volunteering at the Daily Bread Food Bank in Toronto. It was a really great day – I learned a lot and felt really good about doing something that to make a difference in my community. There were about 15 of us volunteering on that day and we spent the day pitching in different ways. Throughout the day there were many opportunities to learn about the work of the Daily Bread Food Bank, how they serve the community and about the challenges faced by those in need among us. Here are 10 things that I learned:

1. Daily Bread Food Bank is a distribution hub that collects, sorts and distributes food through a network of food banks and other food relief programs based in Toronto. It is the GTA’s largest network of food relief programs for people who are struggling with hunger. Daily Bread’s member agencies place food orders based on the number of people they serve. Daily Bread has a fleet of five trucks and drivers who deliver the food to the programs that include neighbourhood food banks, shelters, hostels and school food programs. In all, the Daily Bread distributes food to almost 200 member agencies.
2. I was amazed to learn that the Daily Bread Food Bank provides food for more than 80,000 people a year. My mom grew up in a town with 20,000 people. So, to think that the Daily Bread Food Bank feeds 4 whole towns of that size is pretty amazing. Here is a closer look at who the Daily Bread Food Bank helps:
3. 80% of donations to the Daily Bread Food Bank come from food companies like Campbell, Hershey, General Mills, Loblaw and Walmart, and 20% come in from people in the community.
4. In the morning, we sorted carrots into three bins. One bin was for the “good” carrots, which would be given to clients. The second bin was for the ones that didn’t look “healthy” were thrown out. The third bin was for the smaller carrots or broken carrots and they would be used for meals that are prepared in their kitchens. Because no matter how big or small, no carrot gets left behind and they are all used. 40% of the food distributed by Daily Bread is fresh.
5. During my afternoon session when sorting food, I learned that there is a lack of baby food and formula. A lot of people that need the services and help that food banks provide are families with babies and young children.
6. When you shop at grocery stores like FreshCo and Metro, those pre-packed bags of food that you purchase go to Daily Bread Food Bank, where the kitchen prepares meals fresh and healthy meals for those who need it.
7. Some of the things that food banks need more of right now include: baby food and formula, jam (to go with the peanut butter that they get so much of), household items (like toilet paper, dish soap, garbage bags, etc.) and personal care items (toothpaste, toothbrushes, soap, hygiene products, etc.) and canned and frozen meats and fish.
8. The most donated items that we sorted were peanut butter, soup, cereal, condiments, beans, pasta and pasta sauce.
9. In the Daily Bread facility, there is a huge kitchen where staff prepares between 3000 and 4000 meals to distribute to 200 member agencies. These meals are sent out to drop-in programs at hostels, shelters and community centers across Toronto.
10. I had the opportunity to volunteer alongside a father and son. The father was grateful that the Daily Bread Food Bank had helped him at a time in his life when he need it and volunteering was his way of giving back. I love this. It reminded me of a similar story that I was drawn to late last year. Justin Bieber and his Mom used the local food bank when he was young and they needed support. In December, he did an intimate concert in the Danforth Music Hall and he donated all of the proceeds from the ticket sales to Daily Bread Food Bank. When people receive help that they need, they don’t forget and so many give back when and how they can.

I had an awesome day volunteering at Daily Bread Food Bank. It was great to meet some of the people who work there and also the volunteers that I worked with for the day. We didn’t know each other, but we all came together at the same place at the same time with the same purpose and I love being part of moments like that. Here’s the thing – everything counts. If you can’t commit to volunteering every weekend, that’s ok. Do what you can, when you can and where you can. It all adds up.

To learn more about the work of the Daily Bread Food Bank, hunger in our community and how you can help, please visit http://www.dailybread.ca.