Ten thousand dollars goes a long way. It’s certainly true that with an influx of funds donated to the Wheatland County Food Bank from Strathmore Ford, many, many people who have needed the help of the food bank during the COVID-19 pandemic, will not go hungry.
Chris Endecott, Strathmore Ford General Sales Manager explained how the team at Strathmore Ford felt being able to make such a sizeable donation, and at a time when so many people have needed the support of the food bank.
“We know that it's been a really tough couple of years for everyone in the area, and we'd like to remind everyone that we're a local business and we like to help everybody out,” he said.
“We have had a great year and we want to thank everyone for contributing, so we thought this would be the best way to give something back to the community,” explained Endecott.
“It was all done by our staff as just a way to give back and make Christmas good for some people here,” he said.
He says the way it worked was that in November and December, he and the sales team at Strathmore Ford took a bit of money that was made out of every car they sold. Funds from their own commissions, that were put into the pot to give back to the community.
Lynette Aschenbrenner of Wheatland County Food Bank says, "We've definitely seen a rise in our numbers in probably over the last six months. We're seeing a lot more people not getting back to work or being laid off again. The economy is still not that great."
"Getting donations like that just allows us to make sure that we can keep providing all the food and necessities that our clients need," she said.
"It goes a really long way, and obviously when we're shopping for food, we always watch for good deals and things that are on sale. In addition, she says, "We still have to keep a roof over our heads and the lights on and the freezers cold to keep all the food in so there's always those kinds of costs involved as well."
Aschenbrenner says, "The community supports is always really good. This year has been amazing. We live in an amazing community that really supports us and all of the other non-profits in town as well."