During the pandemic there was a 200% increase in new clients accessing food banks in Toronto. According to Daily Bread Food Bank’s 2020 Who’s Hungry report, if current usage rates continue, there could be as many as 1.4 million visits to food banks across the city in 2021 – the highest number ever recorded in Toronto’s history.
Earlier this month Nextdoor partnered with Daily Bread Food Bank by asking neighbours from across Toronto to safely rally together to collect food donations for community members in need, in support of Daily Bread Food Bank’s Spring Food Drive.
Shakura was one of those neighbours. From an early age, Shakura’s parents instilled in her a strong sense of community and she learned the value of taking care of her neighbours early on.
When the opportunity to serve as a Daily Bread Food Bank Community Champion arose, Shakura took action. First, she set up a covid-safe food drive and invited her neighbours to safely drop off non-perishable food donations to the local school. However, as a musician and community-driven leader, Shakura did not stop there. She added some extra excitement by organizing a caravan of volunteers who drove down to the Spring drive thru event to deliver their donations together–honking and singing along the way! A huge thank you to Leigh, Lee, the Nathaniel Family, Karl, the Madeira family, Amy, Jeff and the Dickson Family for joining in and making this possible!
Noel is another neighbour who took part. He was surprised to hear that demand for food bank services in Toronto has climbed substantially during the pandemic and he wanted to help. “Organizing a neighbourhood food drive seemed like a fun and easy way to pitch in,” Noel shared.
Along with other Community Champions from across the city, Noel, Madeleine, and Malcolm collected food donations from porches and driveways of their neighbours and delivered it to the Spring drive thru event. Noel later recounted that the event was an opportunity to share the value of giving back to the community with his children, a lesson he learned when volunteering for the Daily Bread Food Bank as a local elementary school student.
Thanks in part to incredible neighbours across Toronto, Daily Bread Food Bank reached their goal of collecting 25,000 pounds of food. To the 350+ families who drove to Daily Bread’s Spring Food Drive, including a number of Community Champions who rallied their neighbours–thank you! You made a difference and helped ensure Torontonians in need have a neighbourhood they can count on.
Still want to donate? Visit Dailybread.ca for information how to help today.
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