WCSS continues to see record-breaking numbers of Food Bank visits. Every week, more of our neighbours are struggling to put nutritious food on the table. The challenges our community faces are real, and we need your help to meet this growing need.
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Read below to hear the story of a food bank visitor in the Sea to Sky.
“Starting over with nothing at retirement age is incredibly challenging. I am a young senior who recently had no choice but to leave my marriage due to abuse. With no savings, a cancer diagnosis, and limited options for places to go, my oldest child insisted I move in with them in Squamish. Prior to my move, I had only visited Squamish a few times. I always knew it was a place I liked to spend time, but I never realized how expensive it was. Nor did I realize the extent of the housing crisis in the Sea to Sky Corridor. Thankfully, I had a safe place to go initially, but I have been here for over three years now with no hope of ever affording my own place.
I try not to be a burden on others and certainly do not live an extravagant lifestyle. I found a job so at 65 years of age I spend my days going to work and coming home. I don’t own a vehicle and am not on a bus route, so if I can’t walk to where I need to go or get a ride from family, I just don’t go. It also means I can’t go back to my hometown to reconnect with friends, so it’s a lonely and simple life.
Healthy food is so expensive now, so I use the food bank regularly and eat cheaper foods like pasta which has increased by weight, but I can’t afford exercise classes, and my exercise tapes aren’t enough to get me motivated in my small space. So, in addition to money, I also worry about my health. I spend time looking for low-income subsidy programs and filling out forms, one of which has provided me with access to free eyeglasses thankfully, but my dental care has fallen by the wayside and for years I’ve put off important dental care.
I’m not sure what all this means for the longer term. I hope that I can meet others in the community at free events, although most of the seniors’ events seem to take place during the day when I’m at work. I try not to think about the future too much because it makes me extremely anxious. I wonder if others can imagine having no safety net and not being able to plan for retirement, where all you have to look forward to is more work, with no end in sight.
Despite these challenges, I am grateful for the support of my family and the community programs that have helped me. I continue to look for ways to improve my situation and plan for the future, even though it feels nearly impossible at times.”
– Food Bank Client, Sea to Sky Corridor
These testimonials are excerpts from the food insecurity narratives developed as part of the Sea to Sky Food Resiliency Project by Whistler Centre for Sustainability, Engagement + Planning. Thanks to the food bank clients who responded to the survey used to develop the narratives.