The Dauphin & District Community Food Bank needs more help than ever before, and Dauphin businesses and farmers are stepping up in a big way.
Don Dewar is a Dauphin farmer, and former Food Bank board member. In an area where farming is an important way of life, what's the best way to help those in need? By doing exactly that: the Food Bank has been donated a plot of land by the City of Dauphin, and all the inputs necessary by several businesses.
Intermountain Ag Society is donating seed, seed treatment, and chemicals for the field; Dauphin Co-op is donating fuel and fertilizer; Betty and Al Dunsmore are covering the cost of signage; Cargill Grain will accept delivery and purchase the crop following harvest; the City of Dauphin has donated the field, covering the cost of crop insurance, and waiving the land lease fee for the summer. Dewar Seed Farms is providing the equipment and labour. Dewar said he couldn't have picked a better group of people to work with on the project.
"We've been fortunate enough to get all the unputs supplied by different suppliers to grow a crop...getting everybody together, I'm fortunate to know these suppliers, and we work with the suppliers on different levels, and when I asked them to support the food bank, they were more than willing to help," said Dewar.
With first-hand food bank experience, formerly serving as a member of the board, Dewar said it's not hard to see their needs are higher than ever right now. With all the work they do, all the people that make use of the food bank, and the rising cost of groceries, this project will be very helpful.
"The food bank's always had a soft spot with myself, I was on the board for years, actually I was treasurer, and I realized the problems they have trying to meet the need, we all know the price of groceries is going up...the food bank supplies all the food for the Christmas hampers that they're giving out at Christmas time, as well as all they food they give out during the year, so it's a small part of their overall budget I think, but it will be needed, and it will definitely be used," said Dewar.
If all goes well, the Food Bank expects these donations to lead between $25,000 and $35,000 in revenue for the Food Bank to put back into their programs.
