Porch Pirates for Good Set Sail Saturday in Peterborough and They Need One Thing From You: Food

By Scott Arnold

Kawartha Food Share’s Porch Pirates for Good food drive returns Saturday, October 24th, and residents can take part by leaving a bag of non-perishable food on their front porch for volunteers to collect starting at 9am.

Volunteers are the heart of Porch Pirates for Good, helping collect donations from doorsteps across Peterborough and deliver them to Kawartha Food Share. (photo courtesy of Kawartha Food Share)

The idea is simple: as volunteer “porch pirates” travel across Peterborough, they’ll pick up donations from doorsteps throughout the city and deliver them to Kawartha Food Share to help restock its warehouse.

Now in its seventh year, the annual food drive has collected more than 190,000 pounds of food and over $20,000 in monetary donations over the past six years.

With food costs continuing to put pressure on households and food banks facing increased demand, those donations can make a real difference for people in Peterborough City and County.

1. Peterborough residents can take part in Porch Pirates for Good by leaving a bag of non-perishable food on their front porch for volunteers to collect starting at 9am on Saturday, October 24th. (photo courtesy of Kawartha Food Share

What to Do Tomorrow

Taking part in Porch Pirates for Good is easy.

1. Fill a bag with non-perishable food donations.

2. Leave it on your front porch at 9am on Saturday, October 24th.

3. Attach the Porch Pirates for Good flyer if you received one, or use another way to make the donation easy for volunteers to identify.

Volunteers will travel across the city to collect donations and bring them back to Kawartha Food Share.

Leave a bag of non-perishable food on your front porch at 9am on Saturday, October 24th, and attach the Porch Pirates for Good flyer or another clear label so volunteers can easily identify your donation. It’s that simple. (photo courtesy of kawartha food share)

What Does Kawartha Food Share Need Most?

Every donation helps, but some items are especially needed right now.

• Peanut butter

• Canned tuna

• Canned vegetables and fruit

• Individually wrapped, nut-free, school snacks

• Mac & Cheese

• Apple Sauce

• Pasta and pasta sauce

• Breakfast cereal

• Gluten-free items, including pasta, cookies and oats

• Canned soup and stew

Kawartha Food Share supplies 37 member agencies and 51 schools across Peterborough City and County. Replenishing its warehouse is particularly important heading into the colder months and the holiday season, when many people need additional support.

You Can Still Help Even Without a Food Donation

If you cannot participate in the doorstep food drive, you can make a monetary donation online at kawarthafoodshare.com/donations.html.

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One Bag Can Make a Difference

Porch Pirates for Good works because neighbours are willing to help neighbours. A bag of groceries left on a doorstep may not seem like much, but when donations come in from across Peterborough, they help Kawartha Food Share get more food to the people and families who need it.

Saturday morning, Peterborough residents have a simple way to be part of that effort: fill a bag, leave it out at 9am and let the porch pirates take it from there.

Scott Arnold is a Journalist and Content Creator at PTBOCanada Media Inc

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

A Citywide Effort to Help Fight Hunger: Kawartha Food Share's Porch Pirates for Good Returns October 24th

By Scott Arnold

Kawartha Food Share is asking Peterborough residents to leave a bag of non-perishable food on their front porch on Saturday, October 24th, as Porch Pirates for Good returns to help restock the shelves at its warehouse.

Kawartha Food Share is calling on the community for support during the 7th Annual Porch Pirates for Good food drive set for Saturday, October 24th. (photo courtesy of Kawartha Food Share)

Now in its seventh year, the citywide food drive has collected more than 190,000 pounds of food and over $20,000 in monetary donations over the past six years.

The idea is simple: residents leave a bag of food outside their home at 9am on October 24th, and volunteer “porch pirates” travel across the city to collect the donations and deliver them to Kawartha Food Share.

Residents are asked to attach the Porch Pirates for Good flyer to their donation, or use another way to make it easy for volunteers to identify. Flyers are being distributed throughout the city during the week leading up to collection day.

What Food Is Needed?

With food bank use at an all-time high across Canada, Kawartha Food Share says rising food costs and supply chain shortages are affecting local clients, donors and the organization’s own purchasing power.

The food drive helps replenish supplies for the local agencies and schools Kawartha Food Share supports throughout Peterborough City and County.

Some of the most-needed items include:

• Peanut butter

• Canned tuna

• Canned vegetables and fruit

• Individually wrapped school snacks

• Pasta and pasta sauce

• Breakfast cereal

• Gluten-free items, including pasta, cookies and oats

• Canned soup and stew

• Feminine hygiene products

October is a particularly important time to replenish the warehouse ahead of the colder months and the holiday season, when demand for food support remains high.

Volunteers and Monetary Donations Welcome

Volunteers are still needed to help make the food drive happen. Anyone interested in taking part can contact Kawartha Food Share at porchpirates@kawarthafoodshare.com.

Volunteers collecting donations on October 24th can also accept cheques made payable to Kawartha Food Share. Those who cannot participate in the food drive can make a monetary donation online at kawarthafoodshare.com/donations.

Porch Pirates for Good takes place across Peterborough on Saturday, October 24th, with residents asked to have their donations ready for collection at 9am.

A bag of groceries may seem like a small gesture, but with volunteers collecting across the city, those donations can make a meaningful difference for people in the community who are struggling to afford food.

Scott Arnold is a Journalist and Content Creator at PTBOCanada Media Inc

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

It Takes a Community to Feed a Community: Kawartha Food Share in Need of Volunteers for Porch Pirates for Good

By Scott Arnold

Kawartha Food Share is calling on Peterborough residents to help make its 7th Annual Porch Pirates for Good food drive a success on Saturday, October 24th, with volunteers needed to collect donations on the day of the food drive and distribute flyers the week prior, which will help get food to local families and individuals who need it.

Kawartha Food Share is looking for volunteers and food donations for its 7th Annual Porch Pirates for Good food drive on Saturday, October 24th. (photo courtesy of Kawartha Food Share)

The annual event brings the community together for a citywide food drive, with residents leaving non-perishable food donations on their doorsteps for volunteers to collect. Since the event began, Porch Pirates for Good has collected a combined 180,000 pounds of food.

But an event of this size takes plenty of helping hands to make it happen.

“We are absolutely still looking for help,” says Kawartha Food Share General Manager Mackenzie McIlwain. “We need our community to also help us support our community and those community members who are experiencing food insecurity in Peterborough.”

A Citywide Food Drive With a Big Impact

Porch Pirates for Good will cover 57 routes across Peterborough, with volunteers collecting donations beginning at 9am on Saturday, October 24th.

In the days leading up to the event, flyers will be distributed throughout the city from Monday, October 19th to Thursday, October 22nd. Residents can attach the flyer to their food donations and leave them on their doorstep for volunteers to pick up on Saturday morning.

The donations will go directly to Kawartha Food Share, which supports 37 member agencies and 51 schools across Peterborough City and County.

McIlwain says the food drive plays an important role in helping the organization replenish its warehouse heading into the fall and winter months.

Why October Is Such a Critical Time

With Thanksgiving behind us and the Christmas season approaching, this is an important time for Kawartha Food Share to build up its food supply.

“The need is very, very high for us here and for our community as well,” says McIlwain.

“This is a very critical period of time for us to be able to get donations into the warehouse and then get those donations out to our 37 member agencies and the 51 schools that we support here in Peterborough City and County.”

Some of the most-needed items include pasta, pasta sauce, noodles, tuna, peanut butter, canned vegetables, canned fruit and fruit cups. Peanut butter can be particularly difficult to obtain, while peanut-free snacks are also needed for schools.

Every donation helps Kawartha Food Share continue supporting the local organizations and schools that rely on its food supply.

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The People Who Make It Happen

While food donations are essential, volunteers are just as important to the success of Porch Pirates for Good.

Volunteers are needed both to distribute flyers ahead of the event and to collect food donations on October 24th. McIlwain recommends teaming up with friends or family to distribute flyers, noting that covering a route alone can involve a lot of walking.

“It does turn into a lot of steps if you're just by yourself,” she says.

High school students are also welcome to volunteer and can use the opportunity to earn community service hours.

The work continues at Kawartha Food Share's warehouse, where volunteers help receive donations and unload vehicles throughout the morning. Typically, 30 to 40 volunteers help at the warehouse between 8am and 1pm.

“We usually have about 30, 40 volunteers just here to make all of that smoothly go well and to ensure that our porch pirates who are dropping off don't really have to lift a finger to pull out the food out of their cars. That's what we have our volunteers here for,” says McIlwain.

“Without our volunteers and without our generous community to help us out, we won't be able to run the food drive.”

Yes, You Can Dress Like a Pirate

As the name suggests, Porch Pirates for Good is meant to be fun, too.

Volunteers are encouraged to embrace the pirate theme and dress up while collecting donations or helping at the warehouse.

“If you do end up being a porch pirate, please dress up. It always adds to the fun of the day,” says McIlwain.

“It's going to be a really fun and impactful event.”

How to Get Involved

Anyone interested in volunteering for Porch Pirates for Good can contact Kawartha Food Share's office administrator at porchpirates@kawarthafoodshare.com for more information.

Residents can also take part by preparing a bag of non-perishable food donations, attaching the flyer distributed to their home and leaving the items on their doorstep for collection starting at 9am on Saturday, October 24th.

With 57 routes to cover, donations to collect and a warehouse to replenish, the success of the event depends on people throughout Peterborough stepping up to help.

Because feeding a community takes more than food. It takes people willing to show up for one another.

Scott Arnold is a Journalist and Content Creator at PTBOCanada Media Inc

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.

Want to Leave Your Mark on Peterborough? Start With a Tree at Heritage Park

By Scott Arnold

Peterborough residents can get their hands dirty this month as a community tree planting event looks to add approximately 500 native trees to Heritage Park.

Volunteers plant native trees during a Trees 4 Peterborough community planting event, helping expand Peterborough’s urban forest (photo by scott arnold)

The Trees 4 Peterborough Community Tree Planting Event is taking place Saturday, September 26th at Heritage Park, where volunteers will work together to expand the city’s urban forest along Riverview Creek.

The planting gets underway at 10am at 560 Settlers Ridge, with volunteers from across the community invited to take part.

The goal is to create a more continuous stretch of tree cover along the creek while adding more native trees to the park. The project is part of the broader Trees 4 Peterborough initiative, which brings together community groups, local organizations and residents to help grow Peterborough’s urban forest.

There’s still time to register if you’d like to be part of the planting. Registration is available through peterborough.ca/trees.

The Trees 4 Peterborough initiative is bringing community members together to create more tree cover and greener neighbourhoods across the city. (photo by scott arnold)

This particular event is being supported through a partnership with Peterborough GreenUP, along with donations from RBC Wealth Management, The Excelsior Group and Fairlife. East Side Mario’s and Merrett Home Hardware are also contributing to the event through in-kind support.

Whether you’re an experienced gardener or simply looking for a way to spend part of the morning helping out in the community, the September 26th event offers a hands-on way to contribute to a greener Peterborough.

Scott Arnold is a Journalist and Content Creator at PTBOCanada Media Inc

Engage with us on social media on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, Threads, Tiktok, Youtube and LinkedIn. Write to us at tips@ptbocanada.com. Sign up for our newsletter here.