The Rotary Club of the Battlefords announced it is donating up to $50,000 to the community in response to COVID-19 situation. (file photo/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

Community giving

Rotary Club giving up to $50,000 to help community during COVID-19

Mar 25, 2020 | 1:00 PM

Members of the Rotary Club of the Battlefords are stepping up during the COVID-19 pandemic by giving up to $50,000 in support to the community and help meet the “emerging food needs.”

The Rotary will give $3,000 per month for the next three months to the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Battlefords’ bagged lunch program and $5,000 per month for the next three months for the Battlefords District Food and Resource Centre for food supplies. The club said the remaining $26,000 will be distributed as the need arises, with the board’s consultation.

President Glenda Rye said she is glad the club is able to help.

“Right now with the pandemic I think we all need to pull together as a community,” she said. She added there is a “larger need” now for families.

Rye said the Food Bank is projecting an increase in need and “shelves are running bare.”

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The food bank provided support to 2,100 people in January and usage is expected to increase. Rye said the local Boys and Girls Clubs of the Battlefords’ lunch program have seen an increase in need, going from 40 to now 75 daily bagged lunch meals being handed out.

“Obviously there is a real demand in our community right now, and for the next three months the Rotary Club of the Battlefords is going to help with that demand” Rye said. “We strongly believe this is the time for Rotary to act, and we are so very grateful and thankful that we’re able to do this.”

Director Warren Williams said the funds being donated are from the club’s reserves to use for projects to help in the community.

“Rotary in the Battlefords have always considered themselves community leaders doing what is right for our community,” he said. “Glenda and the board wanted to demonstrate that in a tangible way.”

Williams said the Rotary’s gift to those in need through this project ties in well with the spirit of Rotary in showing a leadership position in the community.

The local Rotary club is still planning to bring Canadian astronaut Col. Chris Hadfield to the Battlefords for its Out of This World Centennial Celebration but has postponed the April 24 date to Oct. 9 instead due to COVID-19 precautions. The venue and time remain the same.

The Boys and Girls Clubs of the Battlefords Executive Director Nicole Combres said the donation from Rotary will be a great help.

“I’m incredibly grateful for this unexpected support,” she said. “I’m shocked by the generosity but at the same time I’m not. We’ve seen our community step up in so many different ways to support one another and this is just an example of the generous community that we live in.”

The free bagged lunch program for kids is available at the local Boys and Girls Clubs location gymnasium from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., Mondays to Fridays. Kids can pick up the lunch while still maintaining social distancing.

Battlefords District Food and Resource Centre Executive Director Erin Katerynych said Rotary’s donation to the Food Bank is “fantastic news.”

“Right now we’re expecting to see an increase in demand,” she said. She added food donations have been down, so the funds will help “keep our doors open to be able to feed the people who need it.”

“The community has really come together to help us out when we need it,” she said. “We are so thankful to all the great people in the Battlefords.”

The Food Bank is open from 9:15 a.m. to 12 p.m., Mondays to Fridays. Only five people are allowed into the Food Bank at a time to maintain social distancing.

Katerynych also noted the Battlefords District Food and Resource Centre has cancelled its free income tax programs. Information is provided on the organization’s website.

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angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow