Maple Ridge Seniors Food Bank will be starting up again at the end of September.
Seniors will be able, once again, to pick up food at the Ridge Meadows Seniors Activity Centre.
The program was started last year during the summer, a partnership between the Friends In Need Food Bank and the Ridge Meadows Seniors Society, and was averaging around 20 seniors a week.
There were around 35 to 40 people on the list to receive services, but they didn’t all come during the same week, explained Mary Robson, executive director of the Friends In Need Food Bank.
The program was stopped when the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March.
READ MORE: Friends in Need Food Bank doing seniors outreach
Going forward, the program will be set up differently, Robson said.
Before, noted Robson, seniors could arrive when they wanted and there were chairs they could sit in while they waited.
“There isn’t going to be that relaxed atmosphere,” she said because of the ongoing pandemic.
Now seniors will have to book a time to arrive for their food and they will receive a pre-packed bag like they would at the Friends In Need Food Bank location.
“We’re just really happy that within these challenging times that we’re able to find a way to make things easier for our seniors again,” said Robson, adding that it helps them feel a part of the community again.
“When they are coming to the seniors centre they are coming to part of their own seniors community. They are connecting with other people. It also gives them the opportunity to know that there’s more out there,” Robson continued.
The Seniors Food Bank will be starting up on Monday Sept. 28 and run every Monday at the Ridge Meadows Seniors Activity Centre at 12150 224 Street.
Food will be handed out starting at 10 a.m. for two to three hours.
Seniors who need the service have to register before they will be given a time to pick up their food.
For more information call Bev Schmahmann at 604-380-0516.
cflanagan@mapleridgenews.com
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