When I found out that I had the opportunity to purchase $40 in foodstuffs from Walmart and donate them to our local food bank “House of Lazarus” I was very proud.
Generosity begets Happiness.
I was also very sad because the numbers are staggering. In Canada, 882,000 people require the assistance of Food banks every month. Forty percent of those are children.
I really feel for the children because they are so vulnerable and they have little to no control over their situation. The big problem is that during the summer, these children are not receiving breakfast support from schools or leftovers from classmates.
With this in mind, I contacted the House of Lazarus to find out what items they needed to get through the summer. On my list; Canned Vegetables, Granola Bars, Toilet Paper, Peanut Butter, Cereal, Sugar and Large Cans of Soup.
Fortunately, at this time of year, fresh produce is bountiful. Not only because people like myself bring in excess from our gardens but also because the foodbank has their own garden run by dedicated volunteers.
The Walmart in Kemptville is fairly new and I hadn’t had the chance to shop there before. When I walked in, I was greeted by tons of affordable summer seasonal items and tasty snacks.
Note: Do not shop hungry.
Even though I wasn’t familiar with the store layout, there were people around that I could ask for direction and almost everything on my list such as Kraft peanut butter and granola bars had visible and easy to read signage.
For this shop, price was an issue, however, just as important were the ingredients, shelf life and health benefits.
I try to avoid canned items but I understand that they have a long shelf life. In turn, I chose the canned tomatoes that had “No Salt Added”. Purchasing peanut butter and tuna just made sense due to their versatility. They can be eaten for lunch, dinner and even snacks (on crackers). The bonus is that it’s a great source of protein and doesn’t require special storage requirements or a refrigerator or stove to prepare it.
I was able to purchase everything on our list and some. In total, 21 items for $39.91!
If you think that you’ve heard us mention the House of Lazarus before that’s because they’re a part of our life. On a weekly basis we visit the thrift shop and are fortunate to call the employees our friends. We even helped them promote a holiday campaign that Kraft Foods sponsored which resulted in the food bank receiving over a thousand dollars!
You can check out more photos of my Walmart shopping trip in my Google+ Album.
Interested in helping out? Connect with the House of Lazarus via their Website or Facebook. Or, Find a Food Bank near you.
How Do You Make a Difference?
Love the album – I feel like I was there with you (although I did not get any fries, strangely). Thanks for sharing – House of Lazarus is lucky to have you!
That is so great! I love when companies are willing to give back! It looks like you made really great choices! 🙂
This is so wonderful to be involved with such a worthy cause! Those numbers break my heart. 40% children? 🙁 :(. The House of Lazarus is blessed to have you in affiliation. Amazing work!
I love it when stores partner with local charities to help families in need in the community. Our local grocery stores also do this. Thanks for sharing!
That is a great lesson to teach your kids! Very inspirational!
Thank you so much Sarah. Teaching our kids about giving and helping them become grateful people will help make this a better world. Thank you also from the HOL for sharing this and the food donation. We always love to see your smiling face. Peace and Love my friend XOXO
That is wonderful! i love being able to help out when I can, it really makes a difference. I have donated a lot of food and household items as well as clothes and stuff to shelters and The Kings Ranch.
Wow! I love this! What a great idea. Sarah, you are so awesome 🙂
I love that you were able to help out with such a worthy cause. It's staggering the amount of people that go hungry. HOL is lucky to have a caring person like you helping out.
Great idea for this post and for giving back. Providing for those who cannot access food is so important. Great work!
That's great! I make a difference by helping our families parent special needs kids. I love helping others. It's my thing. It makes the world a better place. Great job.
LOL…my golden rule “do not shop hungry”. So true! What a great shop you did, Sarah. Love this post. You managed to get a lot of food items to donate for just under $40. Goes to show you, it doesn’t take much to make a big difference to those less fortunate than ourselves.
What a great idea for the mission to have it’s own garden. I love that!
I’m also thrilled to have been part of this shop. I know that charity and giving is something that is important to both of us. It was also such a great teaching opportunity for our kids!
Great post for a great cause. And I can’t wait for our WalMart Supercentre to open!
It breaks my heart to know that so many people struggle with not having enough to eat. Thank you for giving back to your community.
This is a great post 🙂
God Bless anyone who donates…Hate to think anyone goes to bed hungry buy I know they do 🙁 Lori Jackson
wages are too low for some families to afford good food. If our wages increased, the need for food banks would be eliminated
It’s great to teach your children the important things in life.
It feels great to be a part of something bigger than yourself! I am inspired, thank you!
Wow – this really spoke to me, I admire your Time and devotion to help others in need, This will be something I am wanting to look into around here to do. I am a mom to 10 Amazing Healthy children and I think I set the example to them now while they are young they may grow up and set out into their community to help others around them =) Thank you again for your beautiful message and heart
Stacy =)
Great to see compaines supporting the community
Great to see a helping story!
Lynn M
Helping out throughout the year is so important. Our food banks are always in need. Giving is so important.