MOOSE JAW — Brad Leidal has been a volunteer driver for Hunger in Moose Jaw’s “I Bought A Lunch” program for nearly four years and finds it rewarding to help feed the community’s children.
“(I’d) go to the (board) meetings and they would keep saying, ‘Oh, we need volunteer drivers,’ so I thought well, ‘Well, I’m retired; I can do that,’” the organization’s board chairman laughed on Oct. 7 at the Co-op grocery store during the launch of the 31st annual program.
“So you step up and help where you can.”
The campaign runs until Monday, Nov. 18, while residents and businesses can donate at the office at 269 Stadacona Street West, online or at the Co-op grocery store. The Co-op will present a cheque once the fundraiser concludes.
Helping to deliver almost 450 lunches daily — and roughly 80,000 annually — is fulfilling and satisfying for Leidal because he appreciates seeing the many smiling faces when he drops off the items at schools. Some schools receive “huge boxes” of lunch bags for kids, with office administrators and principals always thanking him.
“That makes me feel really good, personally,” the board chairman remarked.
The “I Bought A Lunch” program is “very, very important” for the community, while the campaign is Hunger in Moose Jaw’s biggest fundraiser of the year, said Leidal , a seven-year board member. The collection goal was once $50,000, but the organization increased that number to $75,000 several years ago because the cost to make lunches and purchase supplies had increased.
The higher amount might seem daunting to raise, but the board chairman pointed out that local and area residents and businesses have been “very, very receptive” to meeting that goal.
“They always come through for us … ,” Leidal continued, noting the community donated over $100,000 during last year’s campaign. “They can see the need, especially when you let them know that we’re making 350 to … 450 lunches per day that we’re sending out to the schools.
“It’s a very, very worthwhile fundraiser and it’s very worthwhile for the community … , ” he added. “We could always use extra volunteer drivers to deliver lunches.”
Sharla Sept, Hunger in Moose Jaw’s executive director, explained that families who require lunches for their children apply through their schools, with the schools then informing the food security agency about that need.
Meanwhile, Sept praised staff and board members for making the food and the volunteer drivers for delivering it daily.
A typical lunch bag includes a sandwich, a fruit, a vegetable, a snack and a milk or milk product.
“Our goal is always if we could work ourselves out of a job (that would be great), but we know that’s not happening,” she said. “So we look at it as just trying to support (students) as best we can and help with families and those little extras we do.”
Sept thanked residents for their donations since their generosity ensured the program’s success.
The Co-op is pleased to support this fundraiser, so much so that some cashiers compete with one another to see who can raise the most money for the campaign, said Rose Macatangay, the marketing and events co-ordinator. The winning cashier won’t receive a prize but will be recognized for his or her outstanding work.
“I think it’s a good engagement and they are really excited because it’s been a lot of years that they’re doing it,” she continued. “And I really feel good because … this is the part where the community is really helping each other.”
Macatangay added that her kindergarten-age daughter and her classmates receive a lunch bag at school through this program and like the food choices they receive.
