West Island Mission food bank in need of donations

Montreal-area food banks say they need help -- demand is way up while budgets stayed the same.

Paul Elliott visits the West Island Mission in Dollard-des-Ormeaux about once a month for groceries. He lives on a fixed income and says the Mission is a necessity because "it's not enough to sustain" him. 

Executive director Suzanne Scarrow says 35 per cent of the Mission's clients are senior citizens living below the poverty line.

"We don't have support from the government," she says. 

The Mission is putting out a campaign as they approach ministers asking for funding through their discretionary budgets.

Like other area food banks, The Mission gets food donations from Moisson Montreal, but Scarrow says that's only one line in the ledger. They also need cash donations to pay for day-to-day operations, and transporting the food is just one challenge.

"We're still an organization serving 400 families. We have to turn the lights on. We have to pay our staff. We need to make sure our truck is running," says Scarrow.

She adds that after the pandemic, expectations were that the number of people living with food insecurity would go down -- but it hasn't.

"We're working two and three times harder to bring in the same amount of food and to bring in the same amount of funding," she says.

Today, a nearby business held a fundraiser to help the Mission and dropped off a trunk-load of food products and made a monetary donation for the holidays. Scarrow says every effort makes a difference in someone's life.

“Our charity is not optional. It's food. It's basic needs," she says.

"Yes, we provide mental health support and other resources to make sure people are getting back on their feet. But this Band-Aid is very necessary.”