Minto couple share the love with grocery gift card giveaway for those in need
HARRISTON – Two local municipal politicians are trying to make grocery shopping a little less stressful for residents in need.
Starting tonight (May 29), County Coun. Dave Anderson and Minto deputy mayor Jean Anderson will be handing out approximately $50 Foodland gift cards Wednesday evenings at the Service Ontario office in Harriston to residents facing food insecurity in their community.
Anyone interested in a gift card must text Jean at 519-505-5914 first. Residents must come in person to pick up a gift card, although Jean can help arrange delivery, and only one card is available per family at this time.
In total they will hand out $2,500 in Foodland gift cards, money raised by the couple through donations given during their annual community Christmas dinner to offer anyone working or not working "a friendly hand with feeding their family or themselves."
"With food costs rising as much as they are, we know it is hard to make ends meet and we wanted to help," said Jean. "Like we have a son who struggles but he's got us...if people don't have family, they can't make it."
The couple started handing out a mixture of hardware, pharmacy and grocery store gift cards directly to those in need rather than a charity last year but decided to stick with Foodland when they noticed they were more popular.
In the past, the donations received have been used to support local initiatives like the Palmerston Food Bank and breakfast programs at local schools.
"We've looked for different groups to donate (the money) to where it would have the most benefit and we try to keep it local because generally it's local people who donate and partake, (although) we do get people from quite a distance," said Jean, who chose Foodland because it keeps the business in town and is accessible for people without access to a vehicle.
At the end of the day, Jean said the couple wouldn't be able to do this without the volunteers and donations and they feel lucky to have the community support to help those in need.
"We are invested in helping people and we know that people are struggling. The problem is getting to some of the people that we know are," said Jean. "Hopefully this will help the ones who are struggling right now."
According to the Nutritious Food Basket report, the estimated cost for a household of four people in Wellington-Dufferin-Guelph to eat healthy in 2023 was $311.61 per week, compared to $272.67 per week in 2022. This represents a 14 per cent increase.
In 2021 and 2022, the Palmerston Community Food Bank's average monthly hamper requests averaged about 15-20 requests per month.
In 2023 and so far in 2024, the food bank is averaging about 50 requests for assistance per month.
If a resident cannot come on Wednesday evening, the cards will be available again in two weeks and can be made available at other times if the need is known.
Isabel Buckmaster is the Local Journalism Initiative reporter for GuelphToday. LJI is a federally-funded program.
Isabel Buckmaster, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, GuelphToday.com
