Sault foodbank brings back school lunch program
With a new school year fast approaching, St. Vincent Place in Sault Ste. Marie is accepting applications for its school lunch program.
This year’s program launch comes at a time when food banks are struggling to keep up with demand as food costs continue to increase due to inflation.
"We could really use donations in support of the Lunches for Learning program right now," said Sarah McCleary, the coordinator of the program.
"The non-perishables, definitely, folks could donate. Or they can make a monetary donation and just indicate that they want it go towards the program."
Meantime, Harvest Algoma’s 'Every Breakfast Counts' program is wrapping up for the summer. Officials there said it’s been busy.
"What we’re doing is great, but the fact that we need to feed a thousand kids a week is not so great," said Deron Barlow. "And we’d probably do more, but we have a budget and a limit on what we can actually service."
Officials at St. Vincent Place and Harvest Algoma said food bank usage has been steadily increasing as rising food costs are putting a squeeze on donations.
"The food bank usage has definitely gone up over the last several months over the previous five year average, it’s really not stopping," said McCleary.
"Donations have been slowing down, unfortunately, so they’re not really keeping up, but the client usage is going up."
Barlow said year-to-date totals at Harvest Algoma have already surpassed last year’s numbers.
"Last year, we had about 14,253 adults that were fed through us, and that was for the full year," he said.
"This year, it’s now Aug. 16 and we’re at 14,753. So our numbers have already gone up, and we’ve got another four months to go."
St. Vincent Place has capped participation in its Lunches for Learning program at 200 kids and spots are filling up fast. Those not part of the initial 200 will be put on a waiting list.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Some customers steaming after McDonald's ends free hot drink sticker program
It took years for Vinnie Deluca to collect more than 400 cards worth of free McDonald's McCafe coffee, a collection that now has "zero value" after the company discontinued the program.
Biden scores endorsements from Kennedy family, looking to shore up support against Trump and RFK Jr.
U.S. President Joe Biden will accept endorsements from at least 15 members of the Kennedy political family during a campaign stop in Philadelphia on Thursday as he aims to undermine Donald Trump and marginalize the candidacy of Robert F. Kennedy Jr.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
When new leaders took over in ancient Maya, they didn't just bury the former royals. They burned their bodies in public
New archeological investigations in Guatemala reveal that the ancient Maya people had a ritual of burning royal human remains as a public display of political regime change.
Prince William returns to public duties after wife Kate's cancer revelation
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.