The Red Deer Mustard Seed and Red Deer Food Bank Society have officially announced a partnership with Westerner Park to build capacity in sending out food hampers to families in need. 

Requests for hampers will still be taken through the Food Bank, and Mustard Seed staff will work with the food bank to create the hampers, all while working out of space at the Westerner. The satellite depot at the Westerner is not available to the public, but is simply a larger working space for staff and volunteers to prepare more hampers.

Byron Bradley, Managing Director of Central Alberta with The Mustard Seed, was excited to announce the creation of the satellite depot during a press conference on May 27th. 

“It will be operated by the Mustard Seed under the umbrella of the RD Food Bank, so they’re going to be training us up on how to make hampers and supply those amazing products that go into the hampers,” he said. 

“Especially right now with COVID-19, we know the challenges that families are changing and there are a lot of new barriers, and food security is one of the most critical elements of the community that we take care of.”

Bradley said they haven’t seen a sharp increase in need for hampers just yet, but the organizations are anticipating more families will be reaching out as their temporary relief from provincial and federal programs begins to dwindle. 

“We are excited to expand accessibility so that we can create more hampers and we will also now be delivering hampers to people who are experiencing mobility or other types of accessibility barriers.”

A $300,000 grant from the Provincial Family and Community Support Services department (FCSSAA) was presented in partnership to the Red Deer Food Bank and Mustard Seed facilities in order to facilitate the expansion of their hampers program. 

Bradley said that funding is in place until Dec. 31st, 2020. 

Alice Kolisnyk, Deputy Director of the RD Food Bank, said their role will be in training volunteers, taking orders, and of course, providing food for the hampers in conjunction with TMS. 

“We’re anticipating new users, as well as our existing client base because people are not going to be able to get back to work as quickly as others in the community. We want to be able to be ready for that influx of numbers of people coming in. With this relationship with the Westerner and The Mustard Seed, it’s going to make it easier to provide more support for our community.”

Kolisnyk said the Food Bank is very grateful for the partnership and the development of the satellite depot at the Westerner Grounds. 

The Food Bank is seeking donations of non-perishable items, and people can donate directly or through various Red Deer grocery stores to help keep the shelves full. The Mustard Seed is able to take in other kinds of donations as well, including hygiene items, clothing, and other goods.

People are also able to bring in donations of fresh fruits and veggies, and are also reminded that items for babies including formula, diapers and kid-friendly snacks are also greatly appreciated. 

For more details on the items that are most needed for the organizations, a link for The Mustard Seed can be found here, and for the Food Bank here.