Fight against poverty hits the campus
One man’s idea turns into many people’s effort
VERONICA CARR STAFF
Through Winnipeg Harvest, the largest food bank in Manitoba, Student Harvest invited students to participate in a food bank drive where they were asked to donate food or money to fight poverty.
According to their mission statement, Winnipeg Harvest is a nonprofit, community-based organization that helps feed individuals and families unable to support themselves. Along with supplying food, Winnipeg Harvest also tries to maximize public awareness of hunger and seeks out long-term solutions to the issue.
Hamonic says that university students are fortunate enough to be going to university and have great opportunities and futures ahead of them, so they usually are responsive to those who are in need. “When there are 40,000 people in this province alone that can’t afford to put food on their plates — and of those 40,000, 20,000 of them happen to be children — so it’s quite a sad problem. I think most of us can at least pitch in one can of food or a dollar and start making a change.”
According to Winnipeg Harvest, the number of people requiring emergency food in Manitoba is 46,161 per month, an increase of 8.9 per cent since last year. Provincially, the number of children in need or food has risen eight per cent to 21,245 per month.
Saskatchewan and Manitoba have the highest percentage of child food bank clients in Canada at 46.4 per cent. Although nationally there is a slight decline of 0.1 per cent in food bank use, in Manitoba there is an increase of 8.9 per cent. Manitoba continues to have the second-highest rate of food bank reliance.
In addition, 94 per cent of Manitoba’s population relies on emergency food, second only to Newfoundland. Harmonic doesn’t take this lightly.
“I see a need for events like this because I’m a big believer in private charities. Governments are often deficient when it comes to charitable events so I think it’s important for private businesses to step up and try and lend a hand and alleviate some problems that cannot be fixed by other means,” Harmonic said.
Students passing by the donation stand were responsive with a lot of them eager to help out. One girl even came by with a full grocery bag.
Although this is the first year something like this has been organized at the university, Harmonic and his crew are looking to do it again in the spring. His long-term goal is to create an annual week-long event where a food drive would be present in all the universities across Canada in order to have a larger impact.
“A lot of people forget that we have poverty in our own backyards. We tend to look more foreignly to poverty issues, forgetting that it’s a horrible problem even here in Manitoba.
I found a way that students could possibly help and give back a little to the community so I went for it, and I don’t plan on stopping any time soon,” said Harmonic.
