Mobile Food Bank is a Lifeline for Seniors in Sault Ste. Marie

As The Salvation Army’s mobile food bank makes its rounds to 200 low-income seniors each month, every bag of nutritious food is a lifeline of hope.

Lois is one of the seniors struggling with the high cost of groceries and is deeply grateful of the support.

“If it wasn’t for this program, I would be doing without a lot of groceries. The Salvation Army has saved me. This is a fantastic program – I love it,” she says.

Demand for the mobile food bank is at capacity in the city says community ministries officer Major Sean Furey, highlighting the ongoing need for the essential program, which began at the start of the pandemic.

“Over the last four years, our impact on this community has been incredible,” Major Furey says. “We’ve transformed from a small food bank to an essential service in the city. In the face of adversity, we don’t just open doors, we open hearts.”

While groceries are a necessity, seniors also deal with isolation, and that’s where establishing dialogue is important in their lives while receiving a knock on the door each month. During one recent delivery, a woman told Major Furey and the nursing student he was with that they were the first two people in her apartment in four years.

“We don’t just drop off food; we take the time to engage in meaningful conversations with people,” says Major Furey. “It’s about understanding their needs more deeply and exploring additional ways we can offer support to better their lives.”

Last year, an outpouring of support from local stores Metro and Food Basics, donated an impressive 180,000 pounds of groceries, and every year, Food Banks Canada provides a 2,500-pound shipment of meat while dedicated Kiwanis Club members give their time each month to pack and deliver meals that cater to individual meal preferences and dietary needs.

“We are set up to put food in the hands of people who need it right away, so nothing ever goes to waste,” Major Furey says. “There is a genuine reward in assisting people who really appreciate the help and we are pleased to provide in this way; that’s one of the unique things about seniors is that they value everything you do for them.”

Donations to help support seniors in need through the mobile food bank in Sault Ste. Marie can be made at www.salvationarmy.ca or by calling 1800-SAL-ARMY.