Annual food drive crucial for Brockville food bank as demand grows

The Rotary Club of Brockville hosted its 15th annual Harvest Sharing Food Drive over the last few days, with donations supporting the Brockville and Area Food Bank.

The food bank received just under $18,000 and over 8,000 pounds of food by Saturday.

The food bank provides a five-day supply of food to a family or an individual in need once a month, and this year’s drive comes as demand is rising at an unprecedented rate.

"It's extremely stressful for us," said operations manager Amande Petch.

In 2023, the food bank served roughly 60 people every day. But so far this year, they’re seeing 100 every day.

"What we're seeing is unprecedented in the number of seniors we have coming in, and the number of teens and young adults that are coming in," Petch said.

"A lot of single parents who are coming in, people who are working two jobs, people who are 75 or 80-years-old still working and they can't make ends meet."

The food bank has two full-time staff members and about 60 volunteers. It serves people in Brockville, Augusta, Front of Yonge and Elizabethtown-Kitley, which have a population of roughly 33,000 combined.

"In the mornings, we see 40 to 50 people within the first hour that we're open," Petch said.

"Most of the people who are coming in here are housed, they are working, and they just can't make ends meet. It's amplified in a smaller community because they're the people you see every day."

Food donations are always accepted, but the Brockville and Area Food Bank thrives on cash donations, so they can hand select the types of food or products they can give away.

This thanksgiving food drive and another in December have been crucial for keeping them afloat in years past and will continue to be as their demand surges.

The Rotary Club of Brockville has been running it for the past 15 years, and organizers say the Brockville community always does what they can.

"Everybody feels the urgency of people in need," said Rotary Club president Andrew Kizell.

"It's really great to see the community come together."

Brockville resident Patricia Howlett and her husband bought some extra groceries Saturday morning at the Real Canadian Superstore to donate.

"We tend to give to the food bank as often as we can," she said.

"It's such an important thing to do, but especially when they're having a big drive on, it's important to help out and do what we can."

More information on the Harvest Sharing Food Drive can be found on the Rotary club’s website.