As the Flagstaff Food Bank’s year ended on Nov. 30, usage stats for the period from Dec. 1, 2023, to Nov. 30 are sobering.
It was a year of firsts for the Food Bank, as August 2024 saw 79 hampers go out, the highest number in a single month on record, serving 136 adults and 76 children. There were four months where hampers given out were 70 or more.
Overall, 1,967 people were served by the Flagstaff Food Bank this year, which is up by more than 100 people from the previous year.
Total hampers this year were 775, compared to 715 over the same time period the previous year.
This past year 80 new clients were served by the Flagstaff Food Bank, with 694 returning clients.
While the 2023-24 numbers are higher, they didn’t take a jump like the previous year, where clients served went from 1,459 to 1,835.
FFCS administers the Flagstaff Food Bank, and Executive Director Lynne Jenkinson says, “If we are a small food bank are serving these numbers, it would be interesting to see the numbers from places such as Viking, Tofield, and Camrose.”
The food bank will get a boost this month through the Wild Rose Co-op’s Good Buy to Hunger program, which runs Dec. 1 to 24. Pre-prepared bags of items are available for shoppers to add to their own groceries, then conveniently drop in the Food Bank bins.
Additionally, the Wild Rose Co-op matches up to $15,000 to donate back to the Flagstaff Food Bank and Camrose Neighbour Aid.
The Heisler Christmas market collected 74 pounds of food and $60 for the Food Bank over the weekend.
The food bank also published a list of needs effective Nov. 27.
These include: Jello pudding or jello mix, boxed potatoes, Sidekicks, mustard and relish, bar soap, rice, jame, ketchup, cold cereal, Kraft dinner, bown beans in tomato sauce, soup crackers, mushroom soup, tomato soup, pasta sauce from a jar or can, spaghetti and macaroni, alphaghetti, canned tomatoes, chunky soup, cake mixes and icing, canned fruit, coffee, tea, hamburger helper, cookies, canned vegetables, Ichiban, granola bars, canned tuna or salmon, ranch dressing, kidney beans, one-litre juice or juice boxes, tomato sauce/paste, mayonnaise, honey, school snacks, taco kits, salsa, pancake mix/syrup, frozen turkeys, frozen chickens, frozen ham, toothbrushes, cat and dog food, tampons/pads, peanut butter, frozen vegetables, frozen hashbrowns, and Stovetop stuffing.