Interfaith Food Bank Society of Lethbridge

Mission:
Interfaith Food Bank Society of Lethbridge recognizes the human dignity of those in need and provides food and access to services and resources generated from within our community.

Vision:
In partnership with the community, Interfaith Food Bank Society of Lethbridge is a leader in alleviating hunger and its root causes.

What we do:
We have been providing support to citizens of Lethbridge and area since 1989, acting as a bridge between a community of donors and those who are in need through:
• Emergency Food Assistance - Distribution of monthly food hampers, daily food supplements, and clothing vouchers
• Referrals and Outreach Programs – working with partner agencies, we connect those we serve with resources that help to address the underlying issues leading to food insecurity; as well as offer program space for agencies to provide outreach services on site
• The Interfaith Chinook Country Kitchen – through partnership with our local Family Centre we facilitate cooking classes that teach healthy eating on a limited budget
• Co-op Community Kitchen – a large multipurpose space available to the community for commercial kitchen activities and programming space
• Interfaith Learning Garden – where we teach community members how to grow their own food.
• Southern Alberta Food Hub - in partnership with Food Banks Alberta we distribute food from National Food Share Programs to regional and rural food banks
• Food Share – we support multiple urban and rural community programs with food stocks and supplies
• The Second Door Thrift Store – a second hand store where families can purchase household items at discount pricing and all funds raised support our programs and services
• Volunteer Program – through which community members participate with meaningful work to benefit others

Who we serve: Our Emergency Food Assistance programs serve those in a variety of situations, ranging from single-parenthood, to seniors on fixed incomes, to the under or unemployed, or to those with other social or economic barriers. In 2022, 43% of our clients received some form of government assistance due to disability or inability to enter the work force, 16% identify as “working poor” or collected Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB), 12% are students or seniors, 14% only receive child tax benefits, and the remaining 15% are in short-term financial crisis.

In 2022, we served over 19,500 individuals in Lethbridge and area, 41% of whom are children. One in every second household that accesses food bank services has children living in the home.

Our Kitchen, Garden and Outreach programs are available to ALL community members, as we work to empower our society towards systems that promote food security for all. Food bank families are encouraged to participate in these “universal” programs that are welcome to everyone, which can build natural and informal connections and mentoring opportunities.