By Brittney Matejka

Holiday donations needed for the food bank

Dec 8, 2017 | 5:05 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB. – The Christmas season can be stressful for some people in Medicine Hat with the added financial pressures, but there are some members of the community who are struggling to have enough food to fill their cupboards.

Celina Symmonds, co-executive director of the Medicine Hat Food Bank said they are giving out 85,000 pounds of food every month.

“We’re crazy busy right now, we’re seeing upwards of 85 families per day,” she explained.

Symmonds explained the food bank does not receive any government assistance. They rely solely on donations and are always looking for anything community members are willing to give.

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“Cash is always best, we can buy more than you can. We can buy three for every one, you can buy at the grocery store,” she said. “If you are looking to buy something specifically, canned fruit is a real need right now.”

Budgets can become stretched during the Christmas season, said Symmonds.

“We all want to be able to give our families a good Christmas, and as a mom I can’t imagine not being able to do that for my kids,” she explained. “I think if we can be a little bit extra help to those families right now, that’s what we want to try and do.”

For the remainder of the month, the food bank is also offering extended hours for evening appointments to accommodate users who need to pick up food items. Donations can be made at any community donation box or directly at the food bank.