food bank

September 29, 2023

Increasing Access to Food Amongst Record-high Food Insecurity

Archway Food Bank, in Abbotsford, is no exception to the increasing trend of food insecurity across Canada. British Columbia food banks have experienced a 31% increase in food bank visits since 2019.

Archway Food Bank is seeing more and more households accessing its services every month. Staff and volunteers are working to meet the need through increased hours, expanding satellite locations, and further expanding food distribution and access options.

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April 20, 2023

Common Food Bank Myths

As we talk with community members, we’ve noticed that there are some common myths about food banks.

Myths or stigma can stop people from accessing food or from making donations. We are here to help anyone who needs help and aim to make the process as barrier free and welcoming as possible.

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Longboard Volunteers
January 17, 2023

Warmest Gratitude for 2022 Holiday Season

As we settle into the start of the new year, we wanted to recognize the generosity of those who helped support the Food Bank and Christmas Bureau through the holiday season! Over the month of December, the Food Bank was able to facilitate the Christmas Bureau program thanks to the overwhelming generosity of our community. The program has two different community elements. One, the opportunity to directly impact a family or senior by sponsoring them and through donations so we can provide food and gifts so that everyone can experience the holiday.

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More to the Story
July 29, 2021

More to the Story

By Rebecca Thuro & Food Justice Team

“Mom, can I go my friend’s birthday at the rec centre on Friday?” says Katrina to her mother Tricia. Tricia wants with all her heart for her daughter to be able to experience the joy of celebrating her friend, but she has a dilemma. The car ride to the rec centre is across town, and a birthday gift is out of the question. The last she checked, there was $20 in the bank, gas in the car was on empty and the fridge was looking bare. Friday’s pay day felt very far away.

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Volunteers are the best
April 22, 2021

Volunteer Week 2021

Since July of 2020 Archway Food Bank has had 300 people raise their hand to say “yes, I want to use these hands to help.” We would have never survived this pandemic without the courageous help of our current and new volunteers. The diversity of volunteers that stepped up has enriched our pandemic experience. Meeting new faces and saying, let’s lean on each other (figuratively!) through this tough year, has lifted our spirits when we all needed it most.

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December 10, 2020

Tammy’s Story

by Lucas Driediger

I was first introduced to Tammy earlier this Fall. Although she had used the Food Bank off and on in the past, the pandemic and changed things. With some newly diagnosed health issues, contracting any new sickness has created new challenges.

Thankfully, the combination of her positive attitude, strong demeanor, and community support have helped her get by in this time.

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Volunteer Jess
June 22, 2020

Volunteering During COVID-19

When the government announced that all non-essential businesses were to close, many found themselves laid off from their jobs. In fact, at the Food Bank we had to layoff many vulnerable volunteers to keep them safe while COVID-19 was prevalent in the community. That left the Food Bank with some big volunteer holes to fill! That’s when we met Jess.  

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May 26, 2020

Open in Tough Times

April and May have been busy months. Our staff have been hard at work sourcing new food suppliers when the existing suppliers were facing shortages, reconfiguring our distribution centre to ensure physical distancing and setting up additional Food Bank Neighbourhood Satellites with support from United Way. We also partnered with other Archway programs and community organizations to help distribute food to people who need it most – including seniors’ programs, temporary foreign workers and the Abbotsford School District.

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March 16, 2020

Covid-19 Response

Updated Aug 30

When visiting indoors – please be advised that masks are required.

We want to ensure our guests, volunteers, and donors that the team here at the Archway Food Bank is doing our very best to respond as restrictions change and evolve in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Our goal is to keep providing access to food for individuals and families, and we’ll adapt and change the way we distribute food to keep people safe. We believe people should not go hungry and that continues to be our mission now more than ever.

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February 24, 2020

Dentures = Life Changed

Travis is a loving husband, father, and grandfather. He has lived his life putting his loved ones first. With six children to take care of, when it came to dentist appointments, the kid’s health came first. This meant there wasn’t money left over for Travis’ dental care. Over the years his teeth began to have many issues, but without the money to treat his teeth, Travis suffered through it.

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January 30, 2020

Reflecting on December

by Rebecca Thuro
(3 minute read)

Every year we enter the Christmas season with some loose ends that need a touch of the miraculous. This year we needed a building to host the Christmas Bureau toy room and a way to raise $1.2 million by December 31st. Feeding 3,300 people doesn’t get easier at Christmas. It requires even more engagement from our community. And that is just what we found.

 

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November 13, 2019

Christmas Bureau is Here to Help

by Candace Stock
(3 minute read)

It’s that time of year – wreathes and lights are going up, presents are being bought, families are planning their gatherings. Unfortunately for some, this time of year can be filled with fear of survival of the holiday. When the stress of being able to put food on the table already exists, gifts under the tree seem out of reach. Thankfully, with the help of our community, we are able to change that for many families.

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February 14, 2019

Volunteering is for Everyone

(3 Minute Read)

By Meghan Franklin

 

Until I started working here, I didn’t realize how much team work it takes to keep the food bank operating every day. It really takes an army of passionate, hardworking, team oriented people to come together and feed our community. I have been blown away by the sheer volume of volunteers that make up the majority of the Food Bank team. We have different volunteer teams each morning and afternoon, Monday through Thursday. From stocking shelves, to making hampers, sorting and packaging food, and greeting guests at the door or the distribution window, our volunteers are really the MVP’s that keep the blood pumping through the veins of how to food bank operates.

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January 15, 2019

2018 Christmas Wrap Up

Wow, another successful year! We define success, in large part, by the stories of gratitude that have been shared with us by both those who have been helped and those who have been able to extend help this Christmas. And guess what, we have SO MANY STORIES this year. Each year we face different challenges to make the Abbotsford Christmas Bureau a reality. This year was no different, from the loss of a distribution location to medical emergencies – the start of this season was a little shaky.

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September 7, 2018

Summing up Summer Camps 2018

(2-Minute Read) By Meghan Franklin

 

As the summer wraps up and the kids are back to school, we can’t help but reflect on the successful summer it has been for our kids. The children whose families are clients of our food bank had the opportunity to attend different types of summer camps because of our community’s generosity.

 

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March 12, 2018

The Beginning of Recovery Starts with Food

(3-Minute Read)
By Rebecca Thuro

We are continuing our conversation about connecting families through Food Bank Satellites. Today, we’re introducing you to another service partner that reaches men who might otherwise go without food.

Meet our friends at the George Schmidt Centre. This is a housing project by BC Housing that includes 30 units of self-contained apartments for men who have gone through recovery and treatment. The men are expected to maintain a clean and sober lifestyle and be employed, looking for work or receiving training or upgrading.

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