Porch Pirates For Good 'Plundering' For Donations For Kawartha Food Share On May 27

‘Porch Pirates for Good’ is returning to scour Peterborough to restock the dwindling shelves at Kawartha Food Share (KFS) for May 27.

six Porch Pirate food drives have collected 177,340 pounds of food. Photo courtesy of KFS.

Residents can leave a bag of non-perishable food items on their front porch. Starting at 9 a.m., volunteers dressing in pirate attire will drive around the city, collect the items and deliver them to the KFS warehouse.

Money can also be donated on KFS’s website. Every dollar donated allows Kawartha Food Share to leverage more than four dollars of food purchasing power.

The food drive aids families who are unable to afford groceries due to employment-related reasons and the high cost of housing, health and food.

KFS is looking to receive the following donated items:

• Canned tuna

• Pasta and pasta sauce

• Alphaghetti, Kraft Dinner and Chef Boyardee

• Breakfast cereal

• Peanut Butter

• Any non-perishable fruit and vegetable items

• Rice

• Canned soup/stew

• Feminine hygiene products

• Baby formula

• Diapers

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Porch Pirates For Good Will Host Food Drive For Kawartha Food Share On May 14

Porch Pirates for Good are back to collect food for Kawartha Food Share, on May 14.

(FROM LEFT TO RIGHT) SUSAN DUNKLEY, LOIS TUFFIN, ASHLEE AITKEN AND MEGAN MURPHY ahead of the April 2021 food drive. PHOTO COURTESY OF MEGAN MURPHY.

On May 14, anyone who is not ill or in self-isolation, is being asked to leave a bag of non-perishable food items on their front porch.

Volunteers with the Porch Pirates for Good will drive around Peterborough and collect donations, then deliver them to the KFS warehouse.

Since the beginning of the Pandemic in March 2020, there have been four porch food drives, which have collected over 100,000 lbs of food and over $10,000 in monetary donations.

In March 2022, KFS agencies served over 12,000 individuals - 7510 adults and 4521 children under 18.

In addition to food donations, monetary donations are also accepted. Volunteers can accept cash or cheque on May 14, or donations can be made at any time here.

For every $1 donated, KFS can purchase up to $6 worth of food.

While KFS will accept any food donation, they have compiled a list of their most needed items.

• Peanut Butter – in great need! (KFS suppliers are out of stock)

• Canned tuna

• Canned fruit – in great need

• Individually wrapped school snacks – very helpful

• Pasta and pasta sauce

• Alpha-getti, Kraft Dinner and Chef Boyardee, (things that are easy and that kids like)

• Breakfast cereal

• Gluten free items – like pasta, cookies, oats etc.

• Canned vegetables

• Rice

• Canned soup/stew

• Feminine hygiene products

• Baby formula

• Diapers

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Porch Pirates for Good are Making Hunger Walk The Plank with Food Drive for Kawartha Food Share

The Porch Pirates for Good are setting sail to collect donations for the Kawartha Food Share and make food insecurity walk the plank on Oct. 30.

(FROM LEFT TO RIGHT) SUSAN DUNKLEY, LOIS TUFFIN, ASHLEE AITKEN AND MEGAN MURPHY at the Porch Pirates Food Drive in April. File Photo.

Volunteers from “Porch Pirates for Good” will once again hold a city-wide food drive to restock the dwindling shelves at Kawartha Food Share.

On Saturday October 30, 2021, anyone who is not ill or in self-isolation is being asked to leave a bag of non-perishable food items on their front porch.

Beginning at 9 a.m., volunteers will drive around the city and collect the items and deliver them to the Kawartha Food Share warehouse.

“It’s such an easy way for people to donate,” said Ashlee Aitkin, general manager, Kawartha Food Share. “You don’t have to leave your house, there are so many people that want to donate that have mobility issues or don’t drive. This is such an great way to give back to the community.”

Aitkin says the entire collection process takes around three hours, and the event usually completely fills the Kawartha Food Share warehouse.

“We have over 300 volunteers,” she said. “They’re amazing and we really couldn’t do this without them.”

Monetary donations can be made at http://www.kawarthafoodshare.com/donations.html. For every dollar donated, Kawartha Food Share leverages $6 of food purchasing power.

Participants are invited to dawn their best pirate costumes to greet volunteers on Oct. 30. Photo courtesy of Kawartha Food Share.

Aitkin says that while the Kawartha Food Share accepts any donations their most needed items currently are tuna, pasta, pasta sauce, soup, stew, apple sauce, nut-free granola bars and mac and cheese.

The goal for this years food drive is to collect 50,000 lbs of food.

“50,000 lbs sounds like a lot of food but when you feed 9,000 clients a month it’s actually not that much,” said Aitkin. “We distribute over 200,000 lbs of food every month, which is pretty crazy for a city our size.”

Businesses are also invited to participate in the Porch Pirates Food Drive. To take part, businesses must register by emailing susan@suzihomemaker.ca or calling 705-768-7894. A volunteer will pick up donations on Oct. 29.

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A Porch Food Drive Launches As Peterborough Rallies Behind Kawartha Food Share

A citywide food drive to restock the dwindling shelves at Kawartha Food Share has begun.

On Monday, March 23rd starting at 9 a.m., citizens throughout Peterborough (not Peterborough County at this time) are asked to leave a bag of non-perishable food items on their front porch to be picked up by volunteers.

This ask is made of anyone who is not ill or in self-isolation to leave a bag of non-perishable food items on your front porch that morning. Beginning at 9 a.m., volunteers will drive around the city and collect the items, and deliver them to the warehouse.

Kawartha Food Share

The shelves at Kawartha Food Share are perilously low, and need to be restocked for those in need. Many people have stocked their pantries with ample stores of canned goods and washrooms with excess rolls of toilet paper. The idea is if we all give one bag back, we’ll be doing a little bit that will go a long way.

WHAT ORGANIZERS NEED

Please place one or two rolls of toilet paper in a ziplock bag if you have one, or another bag that keeps it separate. Add the TP to a larger bag of canned goods. Leave it at your door and volunteers will do the rest!

Helpful Items Include:

·      Canned tuna

·      Pasta and pasta sauce

·      Alphagetti, Kraft Dinner and Chef Boyardee, (things that are easy and that kids like)

·      Breakfast cereal – a lot of children will be without school breakfast programs for the foreseeable future

·      Peanut Butter – there are currently zero jars on the shelf

·      Any non-perishable fruit and vegetable items

·      Rice

·      Canned soup/stew

·      Feminine hygiene products

·      Baby formula

Kawartha Food Share

Consider Donating An Old Cellphone

 If you have an unused cellphone with a charger that you could donate, that would also be helpful. Greenwood Coalition is distributing cell phones to our vulnerable neighbours to keep an open channel of communication with people most in need.

As public buildings have closed, access to computers, internet and information is limited for many people. If we can provide a person with a free phone so they can text service providers (through free wifi), it is an important first step in making sure our neighbours are safe. If you can help, please leave the phone and charger in the donation bag and we’ll make sure it gets to Greenwood Coalition.

 SAFETY PRECAUTIONS

* Our fellow citizens need to eat, we cannot abandon them. This method limits exposure for all, but still meets the needs of our most vulnerable.

* It is safer than shopping at a grocery store. There will be no face-to-face contact between those donating and those picking up.

* Volunteers will be on their own in their own vehicles. They will be wearing gloves and will observe all necessary and suggested safety protocols.

* The warehouse is empty of agencies on Monday afternoon. There will be limited staff to accept the donations.

*  If you are ill, please do not leave a bag outside of your home.

* Putting the toilet paper inside a ziplock bag minimizes touching of the product.

* This method limits the number of visitors to the Food Share warehouse, thus limiting exposure.

If you’re self-isolating, you can donate online here. If you’re a business and want to help for larger donations email here to arrange for a bulk pick up.

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