The United Steel Workers (USW), District Three, representing the western provinces and territories quietly donated $20,000 to the Burns Lake Food Bank.
On Jan. 3, 2013, Bob Matters, Wood Council Chair, was in Burns Lake to hand over the cheque to Betty Mathews, Burns Lake Food Bank treasurer.
Matters said that the USW was looking for a way to continue to contribute to the needs of families affected by the Jan. 2012, Babine mill explosion. The USW had been contributing to the Burns Lake Tragedy Fund. The fund has disbursed all of its funds and is no longer operating.
The local food bank recently received funding from through the B.C. government’s Community Gaming Grant program. The food bank will receive $60,575, which is more than the organization had applied for.
Between the large provincial grant, the USW donation and regular community donations, Joanna Carnie, a volunteer food bank co-ordinator, said that the food bank will now be able to provide users with paper products as well as food staples.
According to Carnie, the food bank has yet to see the uptake in demand since the end of unemployment benefits for many former mill employees in Burns Lake.
The Burns Lake Food Bank needs about $2000 per month on average to keep the hampers stocked for those in need. That’s at least $24,000 per year in food distributed to local individuals and families.