“Many people find that once the rent is paid, there is little left over for food.”

Janet Mabie
Special to Spur Ottawa

Amid the flurry of election stories and riding polls, one important study received almost no attention. That study, released by Feed Ontario, flagged Ottawa-Vanier as the region with the highest rate of food bank use among Ontario’s ridings—15 percent of riding residents sought help from a food bank in the past year. Ottawa South and Ottawa West-Nepean were also among the top 10 Ontario ridings most dependent on food banks (5th and 9th, respectively).

“I think these areas, in particular, have a lot of working poor and people who are on social assistance or disability,” explains Linda, who coordinates the Pinecrest Terrace Food Bank. “They also have many immigrant families who are struggling to learn English and, therefore, have a hard time finding work.”

The challenge of finding fulltime work with benefits compounds the difficulties faced by many as they struggle to pay bills and make ends meet.

“Rent is high in Ottawa and there really isn’t enough affordable housing available,” explains Lorrie Lowes, ministry candidate of Bells Corners United Church. “Many people find that once the rent is paid, there is little left over for food.”

“If you are able to become a regular volunteer a couple of times a month or more, you will fill a real need within the community.”

According to Linda, the number of Pinecrest Terrace Food Bank clients just keeps going up. With support from the Ottawa Food Bank and the donations of money and non-perishables from many local churches, she says, “we are able to keep a good supply of food available for our clients.”

The Ottawa Food Bank supplies all their perishable items, including milk, eggs, bread, meat, and fresh fruit and vegetables. However, they also rely on community donations of clean plastic containers and egg cartons to help with dividing eggs and food for individual families.

“The food bank in our community (Bells Corners) is FAMSAC (Family Service Association of Churches),” says Lowes. “It is not connected to the Ottawa Food Bank and gets no government funding, but is supported by five area churches. They provide emergency food services to the community, as well as 60 to 80 food hampers given to local families each month. They also give about 245 Christmas hampers that include all the fixings for Christmas dinner, plus a week’s worth of food each December.”

Ottawa has a number of food banks and whether they receive government support, or not, a key factor that keeps them going is local volunteers and donors—especially from the Church.

“If you are able to become a regular volunteer a couple of times a month or more, you will fill a real need within the community,” says Linda. “Meeting the Ottawa Food Bank delivery truck, bringing the food downstairs, client intake, giving out food and shopping are all practical ways to get involved. We also have a church group that makes a soup lunch once a week and provides a listening ear for anyone who wants to talk.”

Shame often compounds the challenges that force people to rely on food banks. Both Linda and Lowes emphasize the importance of engaging pleasantly, respectfully, and meaningfully with the clients as a way to help restore and maintain dignity.

“When a client has shared some personal challenge with me, I often tell them that I will pray for them,” shares Linda. “I’ve never had anyone ask me not to and they always thank me, regardless of their own beliefs.”