Food for Families - Providing Friendship and Food
The St. Joseph Vinnies had a special guest visit us on Monday
25 May when Martin Reading from Food for Families came to talk to us about how
Food for Families is providing community meals for people both at the Victory
Community Centre and in Stoke. This initiative of helping people in the
community who have fallen upon hard times is supported through the donations of
local businesses and produce growers who provide donations such as fruit and
vegetables to the meals. Martin said that the numbers at Victory Community
Centre have grown since Food for Families first began. Martin also stated he
couldn't get over the huge need that they came across in the Stoke area, they
use to serve the meals from a truck and on the first night in the Stoke
community had 60 people turn up with plates in hand to be fed. Now that the
Winter months are here the Principal of Stoke School has provided the school
hall for the dinner to be served there. Martin describes Stoke as an area of
great need. Food for Families has also been involved in providing lunches at
the Nelson Polytech and is establishing another community meal site in the
Tahunanui area. The St. Joseph Vinnies had created friendship kits that they
were able to pass on to Martin to give out to the community meal recipients.
These kits contained:
Candle - to see in the darkest
times
Paper clip - to keep it all
together
Band-aid - to heal wounded
feelings
Rubber band - a reminder to stay
flexible
Cotton wool - to cushion the rough road
ahead
Safety pin - for the
unexpected
Marble - to replace any that may be
lost
Eraser - so that you can make your
mistakes disappear
Mint - Above all remember - you are
worth a mint!
We had completely underestimated the number of people Food for Families
provides for with only making 50 friendship kits and will no doubt have to get
busy again making more for those who missed out as the year progresses.