Food bank donations still low at Sarnia’s Inn of the Good Shepherd

After a Thanksgiving food drive fell flat in October, hopes are this weekend’s Cops for Cans drive helps with a Sarnia food bank’s supply issues, it’s executive director says.

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“We’re hoping that will be a good collection for us,” said the Inn of the Good Shepherd’s Myles Vanni. “It’s always been good in the past.”

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Tea 11th annual Sarnia police drive has in past years raised 9,000 kilograms of food for the inn’s food bank, where demand continues to outpace donations, Vanni said.

“It’s still high,” he said of the 2,100 people per month who access the food bank. That’s up about 20 per cent from 2022.

“Folks feeling that pinch from inflation and families that would come once in a while are coming more often,” he said, along with new faces.

Hopes were to stretch for 50,000 pounds (22,500 kg) of food in last month’s Thanksgiving drive, but donations were closer to 14,000 pounds (6,350 kg), Vanni said.

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“Not so good,” he said. “We got less than half of what we would normally get.”

With donations running low in recent months, the inn has had to spend more to top up food bank supply, Vanni has said.

Police will be collecting donations outside five grocery stores — up from four last year — from 10 am to 3 pm Saturday, he said.

The stores include Real Canadian Superstore, No Frills, Walmart and Brights Grove Foodland in Sarnia, and No Frills in Corunna, he said.

“We’ve got our inn vehicles there and people can drop off some donations if they’re shopping at the grocery store, or they’re dropping by,” he said.

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