May 28, 2012

Duncan Stokes

Congratulations to David Northcott, executive director at Winnipeg Harvest.

David’s vision and leadership in co-founding Winnipeg Harvest back in 1984 and dedicating so much of his life to fighting hunger and feeding hope inspires those who meet him to believe that we will one day live in a world that is free of hunger and poverty. 

On Friday, David received the Order of Canada. His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada, presided over an Order of Canada investiture ceremony at Rideau Hall.

Congratulations once again to David Northcott on a well-deserved honour.

David Northcott in Ottawa, with his wife Kathy, shortly after receiving his Order of Canada from His Excellency the Right Honourable David Johnston, Governor General of Canada

Football fans can come and get a look at all the wannabe Winnipeg Blue Bombers on Sunday. Training Camp opens at Canad Inn Stadium this Sunday June 3^rd.

Fans attending the open practice are encouraged to bring a ‘Tin for the Bin’ as they come to see those who want to make the 2012 Bombers roster.

Start time is 9 AM on Sunday.

Good luck and ‘Let’s Go Blue’!

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Winnipeg Harvest, its staff or volunteers.

May 22, 2012

Duncan Stokes

While we were blessed with a wonderfully mild winter and at times, an unseasonably warm spring, the Victoria Day long weekend is when you really begin to see the outdoor activity shift into a higher gear. Cottages are opened for the season, anglers start dropping in their lines in lakes & rivers and gardening stores are packed with customers.

 

Whether you’re planting flowers or vegetables, to invest the time and effort to nurture something that can provide you with so much pleasure is something that should be celebrated. Gardening can be an enriching experience.

Did you know Winnipeg Harvest has a program which combines gardening with philanthropy? Did you know it’s been around for more than 25 years?   

It started back in 1986.

Ron (shown below) and Eunice O’Donovan produced more potatoes in their backyard garden than their family could consume.  So instead of disposing of the potatoes, they donated them to the Food Bank.  The response to their generosity was so positive they decided to encourage others in their own neighbourhood to also donate their surplus vegetables to Winnipeg Harvest.  Thus, the Grow-a-Row Campaign was born and has been growing ever since; yielding nearly three million pounds of fresh fruit and vegetables.

Ron O'Donovan, co-founder of the Grow-a-Row program with his late wife Eunice.

T&T seeds have supported the program for the past 25 years with their donations of seed. 

So what are some of the things you can do help the ‘Grow-a-Row’ campaign?

At home and work: Grow an extra row (or two) of produce in your own backyard Invite your neighbours, family and associates to do the same and perhaps do a friendly “weigh-in” challenge Turn an empty neighbourhood lot into a Grow-A-Row garden At school: Turn Grow-A-Row into a science project and have students plant and tend to a row of vegetables for Winnipeg Harvest Come harvest season, bring students to Winnipeg Harvest to deliver their crop. They’ll get an on-site tour and a chance to sort food.

At the Community Club:

• Plant a Harvest Garden to be tended by club families
• Come Harvest season, organize a communal Harvest Day full of activities including a visit to Winnipeg Harvest

You can help by ‘harvesting an extra row or two of vegetables and donating them to Winnipeg Harvest, 1085 Winnipeg Avenue. For more information call Shelley at 982-3582 or visit our website at www.winnipegharvest.org  

All produce is welcome including; crab-apples, although root crops (beets and carrots ) are encouraged because they are best for storage.
            PLANT A SEED, NOURISH A COMMUNITY.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Winnipeg Harvest, its staff or volunteers.

May 7, 2012 - by Duncan M. Stokes

Duncan M.  Stokes

Hunger Awareness Week

Did you know that more than 55,000 Manitobans have relied on food banks over the past month? If all 55,000 of those people lived in the same city, it would be the second largest in Manitoba. That is more people than would fit into the new stadium being built in the south end of Winnipeg. And it’s more than 55,000 too many.  

Today marks the beginning of National Hunger Awareness Week. Hunger is something almost everyone can identify with at some point in their life. Fortunately for most of us, it’s usually a temporary thing lasting a few hours or a day or two at the most for those who have had to fast for medical reasons.

But can you imagine what it would be like to go to school hungry as a child? Or to go to about your adult life hungry for a day?

Sadly, for too many people in this country, it is something they live with each and every day.

If you want to know what it’s like to be hungry, challenge yourself this week…Know what it’s like to have food out of reach by challenging yourself to give up your lunches or a food staple for the week.

Winnipeg Harvest remains committed to reducing by half, the number of people reliant on food banks by the year 2020. We need your help to reach this goal. Understanding why it’s so important is a step toward that goal.

Please consider taking the challenge. And consider donating money, food or time to Winnipeg Harvest to help us reach the goal of a world without hunger.

Camino Food Fund

Thank you to Doug Speirs for a wonderful article in the Wednesday May 2^nd edition of the Winnipeg Free Press.

In case you missed the article, Healthy Living Minister Jim Rondeau and his partner Dennis Tam are embarking on a 760 km journey through the historic Camino de Santiago beginning August 9^th. (also known as the Way of St. James) He hopes to raise money to create a fund that will be used by Winnipeg Harvest to acquire healthy foods for diabetics. The Minister’s goal is to raise $25,000.

Speirs article on the Minister’s journey for the “Camino Food Fund” can be found at http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/opinion/columnists/760-km-to-better-health-149786855.html

Good luck Minister Rondeau. And thank you for this call to action.

Healthy Living Minister Jim Rondeau and partner Dennis Tam. Photo courtesy of the Winnipeg Free Press and Wayne Glowacki

The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Winnipeg Harvest, its staff or volunteers.

Attention Facebookers! You wanna help out Winnipeg Harvest with the simple click of a “Like”?

Kudos to Mercedes Benz! They have chosen to support Winnipeg Harvest. For each “Like” on their Facebook page, Mercedes-Benz of Winnipeg will donate $1 to Winnipeg Harvest.

Share this link with your friends on Facebook and help Winnipeg Harvest fight hunger and feed hope, by liking this page.

Mercedes-Benz of Winnipeg says it will donate up to $2,000 to Winnipeg Harvest.

Hall, push, pull, dump or otherwise get your pennies to us.

Through tremendous volunteer support, Winnipeg Harvest will be able to “parlez” your pennies into dollars; $1 will turn into $20 of food and go towards reducing hunger in the province of Manitoba.

There is no need to count your pennies. We’ll do it for you.

How many kilograms of copper can your neighbourhood group, school, or church collect?

Pennies will be accepted at any time at Winnipeg Harvest, 1085 Winnipeg Avenue; or call ahead if the load is too big and we will make arrangements to pick up the loot.

Thank you! Your donation will make a huge difference.

For more information on how to donate your pennies call us at 982-3581 or visit our website at www.winnipegharvest.org

Meet Dennis and Lisa. They are just two of the hundreds of volunteers who help out at Winnipeg Harvest each month. Check out our website at www.winnipegharvest.org to see who helps us, and how you can help us, by donating your time.

More Than Shoes steps into Winnipeg Harvest!

More Than Shoes has officially joined Winnipeg Harvest!  It is exciting to have a home for this worthwhile project to continue to grow and flourish so that more Manitoba children can access comfortable, well-fitted footwear.  Currently, we are looking for NEW running shoes!  Are you part of a team or business that would like to hold a More Than Shoes drive? If so, please call Wendy at 509-1344 or email at wendy@morethanshoes.ca.  Looking for more information?  Just visit our website-www.morethanshoes.ca to see how else you can help.  If you just feel like picking up a pair or two of NEW running shoes, please drop them at Winnipeg Harvest at anytime!  We most need size 13 (children's)- size 7 (adult).

April 17, 2012

AWARDS DINNER GOES TONIGHT

Congratulations to all those who will be receiving recognition at tonight’s 29th Annual Volunteer Awards at the Winnipeg Convention Centre!

Everyone who volunteers their time, whether it is for a charity, an organization they are passionate about or to help/ mentor youth with extra-curricular or academic activities should be celebrated. Your contributions help make your community stronger.  

Winnipeg Harvest nominated six of tonight’s successful recipients. Congratulations to…

·         Ron O'Donovan and Eunice O'Donovan (posthumously) of Winnipeg, winners of the Manitoba Lotteries Family Volunteer Award

·         City TV of Winnipeg, winner of the Golden Hand Award

·         David Courchene of Turtle Lake, winner of Volunteer Manitoba’s Outstanding Community Leadership Award

·         David Proctor of Winnipeg, winner of the Lieutenant Governor’s ‘Make a Difference Community Award’.

·         Ursula Taylor, of Swan River winner (individual) of the Premier’s Volunteer Service Award

·         Broadway Neighbourhood Centre of Winnipeg, winner (Community Group) of the Premier’s Volunteer Service Award.

·         Jamie Sotlar, volunteer Winnipeg harvest, Safeway Ability Award

·         Tech Voc High School (Linking Individuals to New Knowledge) Mayor’s Volunteer Service Award,  Effective Use of Youth

DONATIONS STILL NEEDED

And Winnipeg Harvest is still in need of donations.

We are still in urgent need of high protein non-perishable nutritional food items. We remain down from our normal levels at this time of year. The shelves that store our Top 10 food items need filling (see below).

Each week, we distribute food to 5500 households. Please add food for a hungry family to your family’s grocery list.

NON-PERISHABLE FOOD ITEMS NEEDED

·         Canned Fish and Poultry (tuna or salmon -packed in water) chicken or turkey

·         Canned Fruit & Vegetables (packed in own juice)

·         Canned Stew, Chili, Brown Beans

·         Peanut Butter

·         Whole Grain Pasta/Whole Wheat Pasta

·         Rice (brown, converted or parboiled)

·         Canned Spaghetti Sauce or Tomatoes

·         Cereal (high fiber, non-sugar coated)

·         Canned Soup (lentil, pea, vegetable)

Drop off locations: Winnipeg Harvest and your retail food store. Canada Safeway and Peak of the Market will match the donations in weight, pound for pound.

Monetary donations are also accepted. For every $1 we receive, we can distribute $20 worth of groceries. Call 982-3581 today to make a monetary donation!

March 20, 2012

Operation Donation

The official weight of the food collected through Operation Donation 2012 is 75,743 kg (166,635 lbs) 75 schools throughout Manitoba collected food for the 13^th annual Operation Donation.

In addition to all the students, who are the life force behind this every growing drive, a special thanks to Canada Safeway, Peak of the Market, the Manitoba Teachers Society and of course, Manitoba Public Insurance for the continued support each has shown for this initiative.

Check our website http://winnipegharvest.org/ to read all the details of Operation Donation 2012, and check out all the images on http://www.facebook.com/wpgharvest

Sons of Italy
Grazie!

Thank you Sons of Italy for choosing Hunger for Hope as your charity of choice for this year’s sold-out, 26^th annual Gala on March 17^th.

The Sons of Italy raised more than $100,000 Hunger for Hope.

Hunger for Hope helps buy formula for the 1,600 infants who need emergency baby formula each month, as well as baby food. Winnipeg Harvest spends more than $100,000 each year for baby food and formula.

Click here to see more images from this wonderful event.

March 8, 2012

Community Breakfast draws em’ in

Over 1,000 people turned out to last to École Robert Smith School’s Fifth Annual Community Breakfast.  

Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz, Winnipeg Police Service Chief Keith McCaskill and members of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers served pancakes, all in support of Winnipeg Harvest. City TV Winnipeg and 92 CITI FM were live on location helping bring together staff, students, families and the community for the fundraiser.

Winnipeg Police Service Mascot Copper gets a ‘high five’
from a Grade 7 student at Ecole Robert H. Smith on March 2^nd.

All told, $13,075.14 was raised in addition to 1,053 lbs (478.6 kg) of food donations was collected by those who came to enjoy pancakes, the company and the atmosphere.

Time to think of the links!

The snow may be still be falling, but make sure to get your name into this year’s Winnipeg Harvest Charity Golf Tournament. This year’s tournament will be taking place on
Tuesday, July 10^th, 2012 at the NEW Southwood Golf & Country Club (pictured below).

 Presented by…

There are some great opportunities to help out Winnipeg Harvest though sponsorship with great exposure for your business brand.

If you want more information, please contact.


Colleen McVarish, Development Manager
(204) 982-3666
colleen.mcvarish@winnipegharvest.org

Have you been putting off that New Year’s resolution to get in shape?

Well Curves has a great opportunity for you. Bring a bag of groceries and join FREE!

This is the 10^th year Curves has supported Winnipeg Harvest. We are fortunate to have so much support from individuals and businesses throughout the Winnipeg area and from across Manitoba.

So get into shape and helps us trim down the number of people using Food Banks each month.  Hunger never takes a holiday and with your help, we will reduce by half, the number of people needing to use food banks.

February 13, 2012

École Robert Smith School’s Firth Annual Community Breakfast goes Friday March 2^nd.

Cost is $5 per person (includes Breakfast & Games) or $15 per family (includes Breakfast & Games).

92 CITI – FM will be broadcasting live on location as will City T-V Winnipeg’s B-T.

There will be lots of great silent auction prizes available as well as massages and haircuts (donations accepted) and lots of great door prizes.

All proceeds from the Community Breakfast are going to Winnipeg Harvest. 

If you’re a Classic Rock fan, hope you plan on going to Deep Purple.

You can catch Ian Gillan, Don Airey, Roger Glover, Steve Morce and Ian Paice on Wednesday February 15^th at the RBC Theatre at MTS Centre.  

And don’t forget to bring a ‘Tin for the Bin’ for Winnipeg Harvest. Listen to Ian Gillan make that request on our webpage slideshow http://winnipegharvest.org/

Still time to get your neighbourhood school involved in the 13^th annual ‘Operation Donation’. So far, over 30 schools are collecting food and cash donations for Winnipeg Harvest.  

If you are looking to get your neighbourhood school involved, check out how to go about it at

http://www.mpi.mb.ca/english/OPDonation/OperationDonationHome.html

January 30, 2012

Looking for a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon?  

Help out Winnipeg Harvest by spending “An afternoon with the Phil” on February 25^th. The Winnipeg Philharmonic Choir (shown below) will perform a concert at Neil Bardal Funeral Centre. Tickets are $20 with all proceeds going to Winnipeg Harvest. And don’t forget to take a ‘Tin for the Bin’.

Choose your Charity Concert Series

Part II of the “Choose your Charity” concert series at the Winnipeg Free Press News Café goes this Thursday February 2^nd. For $15, you can see Katie Murphy perform her unique Folk/Pop/Rock sound. Bring a ‘Tin for the Bin’ for Winnipeg Harvest and the admission is $10.

January 23, 2012

There are about 75 people volunteering here today. Winnipeg Harvest has a wonderful, committed and talented volunteer base.

Did you know that, Winnipeg Harvest volunteers put in over 383,000 hours last year? Factoring in a 40 hour work week, over a period of 52 weeks, that is the equivalent of 192 full-time positions.  

From sorting incoming food to answering 400+ daily phone calls from clients, to delivering snacks to daycares, the people who volunteer are the backbone of Winnipeg Harvest.

If you are interested in volunteering at Winnipeg harvest, visit our website at http://winnipegharvest.org/get-involved/

Are you looking to add to your art collection with great local talent?  You have your chance this weekend at the Forks Market 10^th Annual Art Festival & Auction.

Proceeds generated by the auction of this original artwork will benefit Winnipeg Harvest and Red River College Graphic Design.

Details are listed on the poster below.

Eight nights of great musical talent at the Winnipeg Free Press News Café starting next week!

The first annual ‘Choose your Charity’ Concert Series starts on Thursday January 26^th with the JD Edwards Band.  

The concept is simple, yet unique. Each artist gets their own Thursday showcase at the News Café, and picks a charity to collect donations for. The J-D Edwards Band has chosen to support Manitoba Mutts, an organization that takes in dogs from all over Manitoba who have been abandoned, abused or surrendered at no fault of their own.

Each Thursday, starting next week, you can enjoy some great local musical talent for $15 each week. The admission price is $10, if you bring a ‘Tin for the Bin’ for Winnipeg Harvest.

The JD Edwards band, appearing on City TV Winnipeg’s ‘B-T’

Thank you to musician James Struthers for organizing this eight-part concert series. And thank you James for choosing to support Winnipeg Harvest.  

January 16, 2012

Really excited about tomorrow! CTV – Winnipeg Morning Show Host Eleanor Coopsammy is showing a feature about Floral Philanthropy and its connection to Winnipeg Harvest.

So what is ‘Floral Philanthropy’? The concept is simple. The description is clearly outlined on http://floralphilanthropy.wordpress.com/about/

“Floral Philanthropy is a unique, first-in-Canada program which re-purposes the flowers from your event to bring joy, healing and therapeutic benefit to others. Volunteers retrieve the flowers from your venue, redesign the arrangements and redeliver these petal pick-me-ups to persons who rarely receive such gifts of hope.”

If you want to see how Joyce Berry, Hennie Corrin, Barry McArton (pictured below) bring their unique talents to the process, make sure you check out the piece in the CTV – Winnipeg Morning Show tomorrow between 8 a.m. and 9 a.m.

2012 Empty Bowl Celebrity Auction, presented by Manitoba Lotteries
And while the event itself won’t take place until November, the planning for the 2012 Empty Bowl Celebrity Auction, presented by Manitoba Lotteries, has started. The organizing/planning committee for the 2012 Gala holds its first meeting this week.

Some talented people are bringing their skill set to help organize this Gala, one the signature events Winnipeg Harvest holds each year. For every $1 raised, Winnipeg harvest is able to leverage that dollar into $20 worth of food.

Posted 16th January by winnipegharvest

January 12, 2012

January 12^th.

Big thanks to Drew Kozub (pictured below in the middle on the forklift), the morning remote host for B-T and the whole crew at City TV Winnipeg. Drew spent the morning with us checking out our warehouse, the kitchen and our media room.  Thanks Drew & crew! Come back soon.

Like us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/wpgharvest) or follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/#!/WinnipegHarvest) and to check out the photos and find out more about Winnipeg Harvest.

Remember, every dollar Harvest collects can be leveraged into $20 worth of food by Winnipeg Harvest.

Paulo Borges (shown below) will be appearing at Sam's Place Bookstore 159 Henderson Hwy tomorrow (Friday, January 13^th from 7:30-9:30pm). The $5 cover charge, will help out the Mennonite Central Committee.

And “Music For Harvest” Volumes I and II are available for sale at tomorrow’s event. Paulo is donating profits from sales and radio play to Winnipeg Harvest. Full details are available at www.lovemenot.ca or by phoning 793-8733.

Thanks Paulo.

As always, we invite you to our website at www.winnipegharvest.org to find out how you can volunteer money, time or food.