Tag Archive: food

1. A Family Away From Home

   June 16, 2017 6:50 am 2 Comments

   Recently, I had the opportunity to visit with the incredible volunteers and clients at the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space.  Located in a tiny room inside Northview Heights Secondary School, the hustle and bustle of getting prepared for the upcoming drop in made the room buzz.  Operating outside of school hours, volunteers make sure the shelves are stocked and fridges full to help community members put food on the table.

   

   Elis, who manages the food space, treats everyone that enters like family.  Everyone is in this together and a VIP in the eyes of the caring volunteers.

   One of the VIP clients using the food bank is Anna.  Anna has been living in Canada for 11 years after leaving Uzbekistan because she was unable to find work.

   

   After working 9 years at local Russian grocery stores, Anna had a child named Nikita and found herself out of work in order to take care of him each day.  She had to go on social assistance but unfortunately that wasn’t enough to cover all of her expenses from rent and utilities to food and baby supplies.  She was in a bind.

   While searching for a way to get baby powder and baby food, Anna came to the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space. When she arrived, the helpful volunteers let her know that not only she could receive baby products, but she was also given food for herself.  Anna was amazed by the kindness and generosity that was located right in her neighbourhood. She has been coming to the food bank for the past year now which has helped her stretch her small income.

   To get to the food bank, Anna walks with Nikita in his stroller.  During the harsh winter months, she was unable to take her stroller through the icy and snowy sidewalks and had no way to access the food bank.  Thomas, a volunteer, took the time to drop off food to her home for three months so Anna and Nikita wouldn’t have to go without.  “It was amazing that someone was willing to come and help us out when we couldn’t get around,” says Anna, “the food bank volunteers are wonderful!”

   

   After Anna’s father passed away, her mother is still living in Uzbekistan alone.  Anna hopes that her mother will be able to join her in Canada so they can be together again.  “If she comes to stay with me, she’ll be able to help take care of Nikita so I can go back to school and get a full time job,” says Anna who dreams of becoming a paralegal one day to support her family.

   Anna would recommend that anyone who needs help in her neighbourhood visit the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space.  “They are so caring and have been so helpful to Nikita and myself. If someone is in need of help they will bring you in and treat you like family.”

   

   At the Bathurst Finch Community Food Space, it is about more than just putting food on the table, it’s about bringing family to that table.

   Would you like to support people in your local food bank like Anna?  Make a donation here

   Want to join a team of volunteers making it happen in the food bank? Check out our latest volunteer opportunities
   

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2. Guest Blog: Blaydon Fit Fair

   June 9, 2017 4:36 pm Comments Off on Guest Blog: Blaydon Fit Fair

   There are some pretty amazing and thoughtful kids in your community!

   One of the greatest partnerships that NYH has in the community is with our local schools.  The partnership allows us to educate students about food security in their community and show them why people they know such as schoolmates or even friends and family use a food bank.  In turn, students take on a very large and important role in advocating for support of everyone’s food needs.  From food drives to fundraising, we are so incredibly grateful for these amazing kids!

   Our guest blog is by Christmel, Ayse and Aishat in grades 4 & 5 at Blaydon Public School!

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   Fit Fair

   Written by Christmel and Ayse, Presidents of Healthy Fit Company & Aishat, Production Manager (Grade 4/5)

    

   On April 26, 2017, the grade 4/5 class, with the help of some grade 3 students, organized and ran a Fit Fair! There were all kinds of activities with the goal of helping our school community stay fit.  From smoothies to basketball, yoga to origami and so much more!

   Our main goal was to donate $300 to North York Harvest Food Bank, but we ended up raising $1082! It was a lot of planning and organizing but it was a great success.  Representatives from the North York Harvest Food Bank visited our class the week after our event and told us that of all of the schools that have fundraised for them, we were the school that raised the most. That means, we were able to provide over 3000 much needed meals!

   We thought the Fit Fair made the most sense with our vision of helping our school become healthier and more fit.  And since food plays an important role in being healthy, we decided to donate all the profits to the food bank.  At this time of year, the food banks have more need than supply, so this was the perfect opportunity to help out!  This was an amazing experience for everyone that took part.  With our hard work and your involvement and generosity, we all made this wonderful act of giving a reality at Blaydon PS!

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   Great work promoting healthy eating and living in your community! Thank you Blaydon PS!

   Are you interested in getting your school involved in a food drive?  Check out the Food Drive Kit.

   Would you like to join us in providing healthy food for members of your community? Make a donation!
   

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3. Everyday Hero

   May 12, 2017 5:17 am Comments Off on Everyday Hero

   ^{Guest blog by Shirah Stern}

   Not all heroes wear capes.

   One everyday hero located right in your community is Kayla*. I recently had the opportunity to meet Kayla at the North York Harvest Annual General Meeting back in February. We were in a workshop together and she shared her experiences as a food bank volunteer. I needed to hear more so I could share her story with you.

   Kayla has been a volunteer at her local food bank for more than two years dedicating her time six days per week. This is quite incredible as Kayla suffers from many health issues such as a degenerative disk disease in her back, panic attacks, insomnia and is waiting to have knee surgery. This doesn’t stop our hero though; she chooses to work through the pain to make a difference in the lives of her neighbours in need. “If I could have sleepovers here I would!” jokes Kayla.

   Kayla’s tasks at the food bank include receiving deliveries, stocking shelves, serving clients and records management. She even packs and delivers food hampers for the “Fresh Start” program that does home deliveries for seniors as well as those unable to physically make it to the food bank. The services she and her other fellow volunteers provide benefit children, families, seniors, those with disabilities and people who can’t leave their home.

   

   _{A typical food hamper from a NYH food bank}

   Regardless of Kayla’s health problems, she feels that giving her time at the food bank gives her something else to focus on and a purpose. She strives to make a difference in the lives of her fellow neighbours. This can be done through her daily food bank tasks or even going above and beyond to help someone in need. One particular story of Kayla’s is a time that she was able to assist a client with her job search. The client had needed to know CPR in order to be eligible for a job but could not afford the training. Kayla took the time to research and found a course that was offered for free.

   Kayla told me that seeing a smile on the face of someone she has helped is so rewarding in her work.

   It absolutely blows me away when I see this kind of dedication from volunteers. And it is throughout the network! Each day volunteers take time out of their day to come in and help their neighbours meet their food needs.

   Without your support, we wouldn’t be able to have incredible stories like this to share. From you to me, me to Kayla, Kayla to the client and back to you again – we are really part of something bigger than ourselves. I feel that being able to share these stories truly closes the circle of connectivity in our community

   Join Kayla in being a community hero!

   Together we all work as a community to make a difference for more than 15,000 people that access these types of programs each month!

   Donate today!

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4. Donating to the Food Bank

   March 10, 2017 2:53 pm 3 Comments

   Want to make a donation of food but not sure what you should donate?  We are asked that question quite a lot around here.  

   We made a Facebook Live video just to help our incredible donors to learn what foods are needed at the food bank and which items are better left on the shelf (or in the fridge).

   Check it out!

   
   

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5. Practicing Food Safety

   February 24, 2017 5:15 am Comments Off on Practicing Food Safety

   You want the best when it comes to the food you eat.  There’s no way you’d want something old, mouldy or funky smelling in your food. 

   

   It’s the same here at the food bank. 

   Food safety is extremely important.  Safety measures are taken into consideration before the food even makes it into the warehouse.  Our hardworking operations team ensures not to bring in food that may be hazardous to members of our community.  Items like this can include damaged items, foods with missing labels and nutritional products that have expired.

   Not only do we want everyone to meet their food needs in the community, we want them to enjoy their food safely.

   Recently Toronto Public Health released a guide on Food Safety in Food Banks and Community Organizations.  This guide makes it easy for all organizations in the food sector to maintain guidelines on food safety and handling. 

   

   Food Safety Measures

   As you may know, we prefer to take non-perishable food items from donations (canned goods, boxed items, etc.) to ensure we can get these items out to the public without safety issues.  But…

   Did you know…

   Even though we are grateful for amazing donations from the community, there are just some items that we CANNOT accept.  These items include:

   • Food products that are not identifiable or that have ingredients that are not identifiable (missing label or label written in a language other than English/French)
   • Partially consumed foods (open packaging)
   • Unpasteurized foods
   • Home preserves and canned items (jams, jellies, pickles etc.)
   • Meats, dairy and other high risk items that are not directly from a processor or store e.g. turkeys that have been in your freezer; you may assure us that that turkey has never been defrosted but because we don’t know that 100% we cannot accept it, sorry!

   These guidelines make sure that people using the food banks don’t get sick from foods they consume.

   

   Did you know…

   There is a difference between Best Before and Expiry Dates.  When it comes to packaged foods the dates can get a little confusing.  Here are some tips to tell the difference between dates.

   • A best before date is simply the promise of the manufacturer that the food in the package will be of highest quality. It is not an indication of food safety.
   • Many times a best before date is not necessary and mostly used to indicate when the quality of food will begin to decrease (a change in taste and texture).
   • The only items REQUIRED to have expiry dates are baby formulas, meal replacements, formulated liquid diets and nutritional supplements. These items must be thrown out past the expiry date as the should NOT be consumed. This is because the nutritional content cannot be guaranteed beyond the expiry date and the nutritional content is very important for babies, the sick and the elderly.
   • We will accept foods up to three months past their best before date because we know that they are safe. However, in order to protect our community members’ dignity we prefer to receive donations of food that have at least 3 months remaining before their best before date.

   

   Food Recalls

   You may have seen food recalls on the news, specifically the latest one about Baby Food.  These recalls affect the food bank and food bank clients. 

   How might a food be recalled?

   • Illness outbreak
   • Food tests identify a health risk
   • An inspection by CFIA detects a safety concern
   • A recall of the item in another country
   • The company initiates a recall
   • Other issues can arise such as food tampering

   Recalls are taken very seriously at the food bank.  These items are removed from our shelves and notices are sent out.  If these items have already made it into people’s homes, we alert them and contact Toronto Public Health.

   

   Ensuring public safety when it comes to food handling and distribution is one of our top priorities.  If you join us for a food sorting session, you will be trained on how to identify the safety of the food you’re sorting.  Remember: When in Doubt, Throw it Out!

    

   To learn more first hand and join us for a food sorting session, click here!

    

   Check out these handy guides on how to inspect YOUR food.

   
   

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6. An Update on YOUR Impact!

   January 27, 2017 11:07 am Comments Off on An Update on YOUR Impact!

   Each and every year you WOW us with your incredible support to help those in the community who otherwise may go without something to eat.  

   This year was no different and again you went above and beyond in making a difference in the lives of people that use your local food banks.

   Enjoy the Sept-Dec 2016 Review!

    

   

   For a PDF Version Click Here

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7. Planning for the Holidays

   December 16, 2016 7:21 am Comments Off on Planning for the Holidays

   It’s that crazy time of year! The cold weather and December brings a busy time for us all and if you’re anything like me, you’ve got some holiday plans on your schedule too.  I’m tired just thinking about all that’s going on before we kick off the new year.

   What do the holidays mean to you?  Is it about family and celebration?  Or maybe a time to reflect on your past year and what is to come?  The holidays can be different for every person.

   But, the holidays can be harder for some people than others.  Sometimes they can be much harder than they were just the year before.

   Meet Penny.

   Penny has two daughters aged 7 and 11.  As a single mom, she works full time while her daughters go to school and take dance classes.

   Everything was going well until the unexpected happened.

   All of a sudden, Penny was also needed to be caregiver to her two elderly and sick grandparents.  She had not planned for this kind of bump in the road.

   We’ve all had those times where something unexpected has happened.  Luckily for some people there is financial support or family to fall back on during those times.  Others, like Penny find themselves trapped.

   “I didn’t know what to do.  I’ve always been a planner but I didn’t know how I was going to plan my way through this,” Penny says of the experience, “All of a sudden I had to take care of the whole family – not just myself and the girls.”

   With her family depending on her, she knew that she needed outside help.  She wouldn’t have time or money to take care of everything – especially during this time of year.

   That’s when Penny ended up at the food bank.

   Between the hamper that she receives every other week from her local food bank, store sales and coupon clipping; Penny has found a way to ensure that everyone in her family is able to eat nutritious meals each day.
   

   “If not for the food bank, there’s no way I would be able to feed my family and give my kids the holiday celebration that they deserve.” Penny says, “The holidays are much harder than usual but I’m glad to know that I can get help – anyone can.”

   Penny has been saving up bit by bit to be able to give her kids gifts and a nice dinner.

   “I want them to have what other kids have, they shouldn’t be left out of a holiday.  Thanks to the help we are getting from the food bank – they don’t have to be.”

   Because of your support during the Winter Food Drive – Penny will be able to serve a healthy holiday meal to her whole family and that is something to celebrate!

   Hunger doesn’t hibernate and we can make a difference for families just like Penny’s!

   

   Let’s work together for a hunger free holiday!  Help us raise $250,000 and 250,000 lbs. of food for the Winter Food Drive. 

   No one should go without enough food to eat.

   
   
   
   
   

8. You Make It Happen!

   December 6, 2016 6:14 am Comments Off on You Make It Happen!

   This post is all about YOU and how absolutely GRATEFUL we are to have you in the North York Harvest family!

   YOU make it possible to provide food for your neighbours that would otherwise go hungry.

   YOU come out to volunteer, donate funds, show support and be a part of our community.

   Each month your generosity touches more than 15,000 people in Toronto. Thank you!

   Without YOU we wouldn’t have been able to help your neighbours access food this year.

   This year we shared with you stories from many people.  People who were directly impacted because of you.  And those stories are just the tip of the iceberg!

   

   From Jenna, who started grade four this year and loves science and gym class.  And her mom Trish, who had her hours cut at work.  Trish wasn’t sure how to pay the bills.  YOU ensured that Jenna didn’t go to school hungry!

    

   Your support helped Katherine, a dietician at a prenatal drop in program.  With your help, she was able to teach women about healthy eating on a budget.  YOU ensured that they would be able to feed themselves while they were pregnant and continue to provide nutritious meals as their children grow.

   More than 800 York University students use the campus food bank every week.  YOU made sure that they were able to access the food they needed to help them concentrate on their studies instead of hunger.

   

   Marlene, a volunteer at a local food bank was able to give her neighbours more than just food when they came in hungry.  She was able to connect them with free services throughout the city to help them with parenting classes, recreational activities, resume building and more.

   Over 300 Syrians fleeing war and violence came to the Oriole Food Space after arriving in Canada.  There they have found more than food for their families, but the opportunity for a new life, work, friends and a chance.  A chance they wouldn’t have gotten without your support.

   

   And Jennifer who is only 17 years old.  She found herself pregnant and homeless…instead of her original plan to go off to college and start her career.  YOU made sure she was able to feed herself and her son during these tough times.

   

   These are only some of the people that you helped this year alone!  There are thousands more people that you directly impact through your generosity and support!

    

   We can’t do it without you and we couldn’t imagine trying!

    

   Thank you for all you do – it makes a world of difference – to us and the neighbours that you may never know.