Yesterday, YOU, the community, came out and supported food banks all over the southeast by donating non-perishable items and cash for the Blow Away Hunger Food Drive! Southern Plains Co-op locations in Estevan, Carlyle and Oxbow participated in the 12-hour event that saw the community give to the less fortunate.
"This has been very awesome and overwhelming to have everybody in the community that came out in support. Whether they sponsored something here today or the employees of Southern Plains who filled all these hampers that we've been selling today. Like, that's a lot of hard work, filling all these grocery bags. We really appreciate the work that they do and to have them offer up this kind of a food drive has been wonderful over the many years that we've doing it," shared Ronza Reynard, community ministries director for Salvation Army in Estevan, who looks after the Estevan Food Bank.
"We're pretty much sold out of the bags and that's going to fill a lot of shelves at the food bank."
The staff at Southern Plains Co-op painstakingly put together pre-packaged hampers in preparation for the event. In lieu of donating cash, many community members opted to buy these hampers at $10 a piece to be donated. Most both one or two, while a handful of generous donors bought ten bags during their grocery run. Cash donations in the Estevan location totalled $2,230. Donations made at the Oxbow location will benefit the Carnduff Food Bank, while the Carlyle location's donations will be going towards filling the Carlyle Food Bank
Alongside the many donors who stopped by during the 12-hour broadcast, the Estevan Primec U13 AA Bruins visited for the afternoon to donate more food and their time. Reynard noted that this was one of her highlights of the event.
"It was great to see the kids; how many kids that came in here after school this afternoon and the young hockey team. They can learn from a young age that it helps to give back to others in the community. I think that's great for our community that if we teach these kids when they're young that you need to look out for your neighbor, I think that's great."
The young hockey team will also be collecting non-perishable items for the food bank at their next home game on December 7 inside Affinity Place.
The season of giving isn't over for Salvation Army. Tomorrow, they'll be the benefactor of the Teddy Bear Toss Night inside Affinity Place, as the Eagle Sky Estevan Bruins take on the Battleford North Stars. She noted that fans are encouraged to bring a teddy bear to the game. Bears can also be bought before the puck drops.
Each donation during the event also earned donors an entry to a draw for a Yard Machine 208CC 2-Stage Snowblower, courtesy of Canadian Tire in Estevan. A winner will be picked and announced on Monday on CJ1150, Sun102 and Country 106.1.
Thank you to our amazing sponsors who helped make this day an overwhelming success.
- Southern Plains Co-op
- Canadian Tire
- Dun-Rite Glass
- Power Dodge
- Genco Asphalt Inc.
- Estevan Eye Clinic
- Certified Energy Services Ltd.
- A&A Jewellery
- Prairie Dawg Steel Supply
- Johnson Plumbing and Heating
- Handy Andy's Mechanical
- Wood Country Building Supplies in Estevan
- Grimes Sales and Services Co. Limited
- Support You Life Coaching and Consulting (Stacey Wempe)
- Prairie Dawg Trailers