A food bank initiative will start in Newcastle West this Friday, providing food for families and individuals in the town and throughout the region, and the group behind the project is asking for food donations from local businesses with the aim of helping those in need.
Street Life Food Bank is located in the Newcastle West Bible Fellowship, North Quay, and is work-ing with Food Cloud, an organisation that can access surplus food from major supermarket chains such as Tesco, Aldi and Lidl. In partnership with local businesses and agencies, the group aims to provide food boxes to families and individuals who are in need. The Food Bank will open every Friday morning from 10am and will also be serving tea and coffee and refresh-ments all morning.
Speaking to the Weekly Observer this week, Andrew Shanks said that he and other members of the Street Life Food Bank believe there is a need in Newcastle West and surrounding areas for the service, as there are a lot of low-income families in the community. He added that a similar project was set up in Cork city last May; six people called in at first, but within two weeks this number had grown to 130.
Mr Shanks added that any individual, business or organisation which wants to make a donation can do so from 9am this Friday, and if any individual or family is in need, they are very welcome to call in from 10am. “As well as giving food boxes to those in need, the Food Bank also offers social inter-action with people who can call in and have a cup of tea or coffee and refreshments, and also enjoy a chat. This service is not just about food, it’s also about contact,” he added.
Since deciding to set up the service, the group has got a good response from local donors, and if any other business or organisation would like to help, they should contact 086 2157 975.