Thank you, residents of the Beaver Valley, for your support of the Girl Guides’ Food Drive to restock the shelves at the Fruitvale Food Bank.
The Food Bank is housed in the office of the Beaver Valley St. Paul’s United Church. My mother is one of the volunteers who fills the food boxes for those in the community who need a little extra help with groceries.
Last fall the Girl Guides, Brownies, and Rangers held a food drive. I helped sort, and restock the shelves as the girls brought back the bags of food which had been donated by the residents of the area. The generosity was overwhelming, but so necessary. Earlier in the day I had helped fill a box for a hungry family, and noticed the shelves were getting bare. Once again they are filled, for now. Thank you.
The girls asked where the food would go. I told them that there are people in our town who don’t have enough money to get through the month. Because of illness or accident, bad luck or bad choices, they just do not have enough to eat, but no one deserves to be hungry.
I asked them, “If each person donated just one can of food, how much would it cost?” They knew, not very much. But just think of how high the pile would be on the table and how many people we could help.
It was heart-warming to watch the enthusiasm of the girls as they worked to sort the donations and bring the cans and packages from the table to the shelves.
The little one who carried one can at a time, as she was able; the older girl who filled her arms with as many cans as she could, as she was able; the girl who was tall and could reach the top shelves, as she was able, and those in our community who donated food, as they were able.
The Food Bank is very grateful, but the need is ongoing.
The most useful items include: Pasta and sauce, peanut butter and jam, cans of vegetables, soup, beans, and fish, pancake mix and syrup.
I was pleased to be able to help, and pleased to see the outpouring of support.
Elizabeth Mitchell
Fruitvale