Comments Off on Annual food drive inspires community pride!
How a food drive became a source of community pride
What happens when you combine a DJ booth, a townhouse complex, and neighbours who are passionate about giving back?
The LaRose townhouse complex has answered that it’s a much-anticipated neighbourhood party that collects food and funds for North York Harvest Food Bank!
Matt Foran spearheaded this food drive starting in 2021, getting his family involved to make posters and encouraging his neighbours to join together to help people facing food insecurity.
With the soaring cost of housing and food, “The food drive notion is very relatable because people recognize it’s tough for them too,” Matt says.
Fighting food insecurity also runs in the family: His father started the Cambridge Self-Help Food Bank, and his cousins started a food bank out in Sudbury.
Every year the neighbourhood comes together for the Community Giving Day, an event where folks can drop off donations, but also hang out and connect with their neighbours while Matt often DJs to really make it a party!
“It’s become a source of community pride,” Matt says, “and it’s become something that people look forward to. When they see me walking my dog they ask ‘when it’s going to happen, what’s our goal?’”
Each year they try to start with a goal of $3,500 but this year Matt said they had to be ambitious because of the growing need they are seeing in their community.
This year the food and fund drive exceeded their target, bringing in $6,400 plus 465 lbs of food!
The Community Giving Day has even spread beyond the LaRose townhouse, with donations coming in from all over the city.
“it was amazing to see the list of donors and people I hadn’t met before, they heard about it through friends and neighbours. It’s wonderful it brings people together like this,” Matt says.
Thank you to Matt and everyone at the LaRose townhouse complex, this generosity will directly support nearly 30,000 client visits across our network, and help individuals and families meet their food needs.
Be a Harvest Hero
Learn how you can get involved and make a difference as we work towards our vision of a community where all members are able to meet their food needs.
OR
Comments are closed