Anyone looking for an easy way to lend a helping hand to those less fortunate can simply hop in their car and drop off donations this weekend.
Give and Go, Nanaimo’s annual drive-thru charity event, happens Friday, Dec. 6, at Steve Marshall Ford.
The event runs 5-7 p.m. when everyone can drive up to the dealership’s main building and showroom at 3851 Shenton Rd. where volunteers will be waiting to help unload donations.
People are encouraged to bring plenty of non-perishable food, but cash donations and warm clothes, such as coats, mittens and warm socks for children and adults are also needed throughout the cold winter months. Loaves and Fishes Community Food Bank and the Salvation Army benefit from Give and Go.
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Peter Sinclair, Loaves and Fishes executive director, said it’s important for food donations to start coming in as early as possible so the food bank can start distributing Christmas hampers and the Give and Go event is a charity drive of major importance in achieving that.
“It’s critically important to us because we’re looking to every week have 14,000 kilograms of food come in,” said Sinclair. “We need that to come in between now and Christmas … so this is a big event for us. We need people to stop by and drop their food off because we’ve got Christmas hampers going out on Dec. 9.”
Hot drinks, a barbecue and live music will all be on throughout the Give and Go event.
Ann Marie Clark, owner of Steve Marshall Ford, said it’s important to the dealership to carry on what has become an annual Christmas tradition.
“I wish we could do it more times during the year because the help is needed not only at this time of year, but throughout the year, so it’s very, very important,” Clark said.
The food bank also needs volunteers to help sort food and assemble and deliver hampers. To learn more or volunteer with Hamperville, call Loaves and Fishes at 250-754-8347.
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