October is the month when many food banks are recognizing how busy a summer they had and that their shelves are looking a bit bare.

October is also the month where many community organizations work together to raise funds and collect non-perishables for their local food banks.

Samaritan House Ministries had a very busy month of September, with 150 new families added to the lineup of regular clients, total over 3300 food hampers in that month alone.

Executive Director, Barbar McNish, says she's seen so many people and groups come together to support their food bank, and the folks who need the extra help in securing food in these difficult times.  

On October 31st, Calvary Temple will be hosting a food drive in their parking lot, and the Brandon high schools' student councils work together to get students and staff to come together, and even make it fun with a bit of a competition going on between schools.

"These groups from the high schools, they come down and they volunteer, or they donate, and we are so lucky," shares McNish. "And I'm so very grateful for the fact that as we age and as we have volunteers who maybe can't come down to help us as much, that we have young people stepping up to replace that volunteer task force, that they're willing to look and see what the need in our community is."

"So, whether they come to the food bank, or whether they come to the soup kitchen, or maybe even volunteering at the Y I don't know but volunteerism in our youth is amazing, and they are stepping up to the plate to take over!"

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