Winnipeg emergency food program desperate for donations

The pantry is bare and Winnipeg charity 1JustCity needs your help.

The emergency food pantry, operated out of a church in West Broadway and another in the West End, provides help for peoplewho can't buy food until the next time they get paid, or who can't immediatelyget to a food bank.

Now they're facing a food crisis of their own, said Tessa Blaikie Whitecloud,executive director of1JustCity, which oversees the services.

"We've been seeing an increase in demand for this program for a couple of years and we've managed to get small grants to help us," she said.

"But we're in a situation where we don't have enough food to go around for the amount of people asking for it."

There is a spike in demand during the summer,Blaikie Whitecloudsaid, because people who relied on programs at schools to help feed their kids are now desperate for assistance.

At the same time, donations start to drop because a lot of people who give to the program are away on vacations or at cabins for the summer.

She says the program needs canned proteins like tuna, salmon, fruit,pork and beans, and vegetables as well as pasta, peanut butter, cereal and spaghetti sauce.

Donations can be taken to the St. Matthews Maryland Community Ministry at365 McGee St. or theWest Broadway Community Ministry at222 Furby St.

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