WE CAN’T DO THIS WORK WITHOUT YOU!!
DONATE NOW – The first $20,000 in donations will be matched by The Brew Creek Centre!
As chaos ensued through the early part of the COVID-19 pandemic, you may have been glued to news and social media for any shard of positive news, or maybe a perspective to brighten your day. In that endless tendon degrading scroll you may have come across a meme that brought an important message; it said: “In the rush to return to normal, use this time to consider which parts of normal are worth rushing back to”*
Now here we are in October 2022, a time to give thanks for the things that give us joy, and a time to celebrate the harvest…..it also makes a good time for us to take a look at how we are doing at getting back to “normal”.
Lets start with an understanding: the view of what “normal” is will vary from one person to another. If we agree, lets continue. For some of us, we are privileged enough to see “normal” as back to regular days on the hill, making turns in knee deep powder, riding our bikes on the plethora of amazing trails that abound in the corridor, going out for dinner with friends, or simply having a job that pays our bills, and maybe leaves us a bit (or a lot) left over for an annual vacation. For others of us, “normal” means still not making ends meet financially, regardless of the number of jobs we hold. For some of us it means continued precarious housing situations, it could mean an ongoing injury that keep us from returning to work, and for others it means the divide between making it paycheck to paycheck is getting wider and wider with each passing day. So, “normal” is different for everyone you see, and for some of us the “return to normal” is not at all what we were looking or hoping for.
TOGETHER, we can help to change that.
So, where exactly did we picture ourselves 12 or 24 months ago? Here at WCSS and the Whistler Food Bank, we anticipated significant drops in numbers of community members accessing our food security programs. We felt that with returning business levels, with more pay cheques in the hands of residents would mean a better place for residents at risk of food insecurity. We expected “normal”. The truth is we are still seeing 3-4 times more demand that we did pre-pandemic. Clearly they don’t make crystal balls the way they used to.
TOGETHER, we can respond to that.
In the past, food insecurity used to be considered simply a measure of hunger, and food banks gauged and responded to ongoing hunger issues in reactive ways. As we learn more about overall impacts of food insecurity in our communities, we better understand that the lack of access to healthy food, for whatever the reason, causes challenges that reach further than an empty stomach. We also understand that not being able to access healthy food options is caused by many factors. Sure, income levels can play a part, we have always known that. But, the more we listen and work in this area the more we understand that there are so many contributing factors beyond how much money a person makes.
Additionally, greater incidence of poor diet causing diabetes, malnutrition, and obesity are some of the learnings that have emerged over recent years, and how food banks play a role in that in our communities is critical. That’s bad for our collective community wellbeing. We at the Whistler Food Bank are focused on minimizing the impacts of poor and inconsistent diets for our community members who reach out to us for help.
TOGETHER, we can make a lasting difference.
With continued elevated demand of food bank services (we are currently serving over 1,000 community member visits per month, compared to 250/month in 2019), the Whistler Food Bank NEEDS YOUR SUPPORT.
Over the next 5 weeks we will be sharing more stories and details on how the Whistler Food Bank supports our community and why residents find themselves in need of a hand up sometimes. Our goal is to raise $50,000 before November 4th to ensure the Whistler Food Bank can keep up and continue serving our community needs.
Can we join TOGETHER, and ensure everyone in Whistler has access to healthy and nutritious food options?
The Whistler Food Bank is available for drop-ins on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays from 1:30 to 4:30 pm & Tuesday 10am – 12noon. We are available by appointment on Thursdays.
Thank you for considering a donation to the Whistler Food Bank Today. DONATE NOW
*Quote from Dave Hollis