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Food bank appeals for help

The south-end food bank is hungry for more funding and more volunteers.The Food For All food bank issued a call for help last week, saying that it distributes food hampers to more than 100 people a month in Skidegate, Queen Charlotte and Sandspit and relies completely on food and cash donations from islanders.The actual cost of feeding the people comes to around $800 a month, says food bank coordinator MemoryGale Pearson. This allows the food bank to give out 22 hampers in Skidegate (feeding 53 people), 14 hampers in Queen Charlotte (feeding 40 people) and four hampers in Sandspit (feeding 12).Ms Pearson said Northern Savings Credit Union has been an important sponsor and the United Church has donated money and food.The Skidegate Band Council has provided a space for the program for the past two years free of charge, but Ms Pearson said the housing coordinator has recently suggested that the food bank start paying $250 a month in rent.That $250 would have to be squeezed out of the food budget, Ms Pearson said. After hearing the rent request, she sent out an appeal calling for donations, volunteers, and most importantly - volunteers who know how to get more funding for the food bank.Cash donations can be deposited into the Food For All account at Northern Savings. There are food donation boxes in City Centre and the Co-op. You can reach the food bank at 559-9041.