Every dollar donated to Loaves & Fishes equals about 5 dollars worth of food for the community. (Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

ho ho holiday food

Registration opens for Loaves and Fishes Christmas food hamper

Nov 8, 2022 | 3:20 PM

NANAIMO — A bit of snow for the mid-Island may have people thinking about the Christmas season already, including Loaves and Fishes Community Food Bank personnel.

Registration for their 2022 Christmas hampers is now open.

Director of development Abby Sauchuk said the program is open to anyone: all they need is one piece of ID per family and sign up online or over the phone.

“It’s definitely the busy season. We have a lot of people who come and they only need the help at Christmas, then we also have our regular clients who come as well. It’s great, we get lots of volunteers that come out and we try to pump as much food out into the community as we possibly can this time of year.”

Hampers are available by appointment, and if an appointment can’t be made they have a ‘first come first serve’ last chance Christmas shopping option on Dec. 23.

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“It’s like shopping. They would sign up to make an appointment, come to one of our free food markets, and then they can come and shop for free for whatever they’d like that we have available.”

Starting Dec. 9, Loaves and Fishes will adjust their schedule to focus more on the hampers, but food will still be available for those who need it.

There’s always plenty of food at the Loaves and Fishes warehouse. Their biggest challenge is ensuring there is enough room for all of it. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

“We also have options for during the Christmas hamper season people can still come for fresh fruit, vegetables and bread on certain days, so they’re not stuck without food after they get their hamper.”

Sauchuk said they will have plenty of the traditional Christmas food items in stock, but they’ll also have other items available for those who wish to forgo the classic turkey and ham for something different.

Much like any time of year, donations and volunteers are always needed, with the volunteer sign-up for helping with Christmas hampers starting on Nov. 21.

“We can provide over five dollars worth of food for every one-dollar donation. Right now we’re running between 275 and 325,000 pounds of food a month through our warehouse to keep up with the need.”

Most of the Loaves and Fishes food comes from community donations and its food recovery program, where staff pick up surplus food from over 30 grocery stores across the island, seven days a week.

Last year, 3,391 people benefited from their Christmas hamper program.

One of Loaves and Fishes food recovery trucks unloading at their depot before heading back out for another load. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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