The Agapè Centre in Cornwall finds itself in the red.
"We've had a challenging year," said Alyssa Blais, executive director of the Agapè Centre, at the agency's annual general meeting held on June 27.
Despite their best efforts in fundraising and food drives, the local food bank has found itself $22,000 in deficit.
Not much has change as far as their numbers, said Blais, who explained that they still see somewhere between 900 to 1,000 people per month.
"Food donations are down this year, in terms of pounds," despite the fact that media attention has been good, she said. "We need an outpouring of support, to (improve) that."
Last year the centre served 11,000 people in need – 40 per cent of those being children – including 34,000 meals in the soup kitchen and 165,000 food bank meals, which is equal to three to five days-worth of groceries.
On a positive note, says Blais, "as we're moving forward, we've created a strategic plan and changed our vision in terms of focusing more on food; proving better food choices for our clients"
A garden planted this spring on ¾ of an acre of land on Mohawk Drive, will help with that goal. "We're looking forward to that providing a lot of food from that."
There are a number of fundraisers planned throughout the rest of the year and into the winter including a harvest dinner and auction on August 24. The event will be held at the site of the garden on Mohawk Drive, and will feature garden buffet and auction dedicated to food and garden products. Tickets are $30 dollars.
The second annual Chilly Run fundraiser will be held on September 22, at Lamoureux Park.
The annual Wine and Dine and All that Jazz, will be held on September 28, at The Best Western Parkway Inn. Tickets are $80 dollars.
In association with Cornwall Winterfest, a new fundraiser will take place in the frigid waters of the St Lawrence, next winter, when the Polar Bear Dip makes its debut.
It's an exciting event, says Blais who has gladly volunteered to participate for the right price.
As well, in partnership with the Kinette Club of Cornwall, is a new project that will be on-going all year, where teams of people build structures out of cans.
"These structures are pretty impressive, using 2000 to 5000 cans to make the structure. All of the cans will be donated to the centre."
A brand new update and refreshed Agapè Centre website went live on Friday, June 29.
Blais says that it will be more accessible to people using social media, twitter and Facebook, and donations can now be make online.
In closing and also on a positive note, Blais says that she is very grateful for the volunteers.
"We have had a lot of support; 600 volunteer hours per week donated to us. That's equivalent to 15 or 16 full time employees - that's pretty impressive."
Details for all the fundraisers and more will be available at www.agapecentre.ca.
