Feed Nova Scotia cancels traditional Christmas programs, hopes new fund will reach more people - Action News
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Nova Scotia

Feed Nova Scotia cancels traditional Christmas programs, hopes new fund will reach more people

The umbrella organization for 140 food banks, shelters and meal programs across the province is cancelling its Christmas registry, and will no longer provide food and funds specifically for Christmas programs. It has instead introduced a new fund, distributed to all its member organizations to use as they see fit.

Christmas aid mostly went to Halifax and cost upward of $400K, while smaller communities were left out

A building with a Feed Nova Scotia sign is shown
Feed Nova Scotia says the new holiday fund is a more equitable way of helping people who are struggling across the province. (Galen McRae/CBC)

As food costs riseand lines at food banks become longer in every corner of the province, the umbrella organization that supports them is cancelling its traditional Christmas programming and redistributing the money in a more equitable manner.

For around 30 years, Feed Nova Scotia ran a Christmas registry and provided food and funds to support Christmas programs like turkey dinner hampers for people who couldn't afford to put ameal on the table.

But Ash Avery, the charity's executive director, says most of the aid was going to Halifax, and smaller towns were left out.

"We consulted with our member network, the communities we serve, and it became clear that the Christmas registry wasn't the most impactful or resource-efficient way to help people throughout Nova Scotia," Avery told CBC News.

Avery said a new, $450,000 holiday fund has been distributed to all 140 member agencies to use for thespecial occasions that matter to their clients not just Christmas.

The new fund allows Feed Nova Scotia to give more whilesaving on overhead costs associated with the Christmas registry.

"It was costing upwards of $400,000, it was taking sevenfull-time contract staff ... just to be able to serve this community here in the [Halifax]inner city," she said.

"So by giving funds directly to the agencies that serve their communities, we're cutting out a lot of the overhead expenses that come with assembling hampers and distributing them to people."

The amount of funding each organization receives is determined bythe type of service they provide and the number of people they serve.

New funding could help meet soaring demand

In Liverpool, on the province's South Shore, Shelly Panczyk is already buying turkeys, preparing for the busy holiday season at the Queens County Food Bank.

Panczyk, the chair of the organization, said the food bank is now supporting 65 families a week, more than double the amount in years past.

"You're getting more of the working people coming because they can't afford to pay rent, to pay their other utilities and try to feed, especially if you got children, you just can't do it," she said.

Panczyk said she received the money from the Holiday Fund in July, and will use it to fill Christmas hampers andstockings for children. She said the money will allow the food bank to provide "extra" this year.

Cans on a shelf are shown
Food banks across the province say they're having to provide food for more people than ever before. (Brian MacKay/CBC)

In Hants County, food insecurity is also through the roof, according to Ashley Hingley, chair and president of the Windsor and District Matthew 25 Food Bank. Hingley saidthe organization isexperiencing triple the demand, serving upwards of 600 families a month.

Because of this, the food bank has had to cut down the size of its holiday hampers from three meals to one, and can sometimes only afford to provide chickens instead of turkeys.

Shethinks the new holiday funding will help keep the food bank afloat.

"To tell you the truth, because of the price of food right now, I'm not sure that money is going to go very far," she said."But it's definitely more than what we had before, so that's kind of nice to know that we have a little bit of a backup."

Both Panczyk and Hingley said their communities are becoming more diverse, but the demand for their Christmas programs is still very high.

Demographics changing in Halifax

The Brunswick Street Mission in Halifax has done away with turkey dinners entirely, as it'sseeing more diverse and complex needs at their food bank.

Executive director Lisa Harrison said anecdotally, around 40 per cent of the food bank's clientele don't celebrate Christmas.

"I think that any sort of Christmassy type stuff can create a bit of a boundary to people who maybe aren't Christian," Harrison said.

She also said homelesspeople are the largest and fastest-growing demographic the mission serves, so she plans to use the new funding to provide moresurvival kits during the holidays, filled withitems like socks, batteries and gift cards.

"People always need more supplies at Christmas," she said."A lot of people are unhoused, often their stuff becomes ruined by the weather or gets stolen or lost. So it's about trying to keep those people healthy and alive throughout the winter."

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