Hamilton Bulldogs, Andlauer family donate $100K to Hamilton Food Share amid COVID-19

Hamilton Food Share receiveda $100,000 donation to help locals celebrate the holidays during COVID-19.

The donation was made by the Hamilton Bulldogs' Hockey team foundation, ATS Healthcare and the Andlauer family.

"We know our communities are hurting and we wanted to provide money for what's most important right now and to bring some comfort at this special time of year, a time of spiritual reflection, a time where we need to look after people in need," Bulldogs' Foundation chair Michael Andlauer said in a press release.

With families celebrating Passover, Easter and Ramadan this month, Andlauer said they wanted to ensure everyone had enough resources, especially as COVID-19 adds to the stress.

"In Hamilton Food Share's 30-year history, never have we seen a need as great as we do today," Hamilton Food Share's executive director Joanne Santucci said in a press release.

The food bank is accessed by some 13,000 people each month, 5,000 of whom are children.

At the end of March, Food Share's resource development manager Celeste Taylor said if the city's unemployment rate rose into the double digits due to COVID-19 there could be a "sharp" increase in the number of people relying on the city's food bank services.

Taylor added that the organization had to cancel all of its usual food drive events, making it even more difficult for them to collect food.

"This support is a great boost in the fight against hunger in our community," Santucci said. "We are so grateful for this wonderful gift. It will be turned into food to feed many of our friends and neighbours in need."