Tis the season for giving back, and Coast Capital Savings gave back to the community in a major way this week.
Coast Capital Savings announced on Friday that they are donating $75,000 to food banks across B.C.
One of their biggest donations directly helped the Surrey Food Bank. $14,000 of the $75,000 to be donated across the province was given to the Surrey Food Bank on Friday.
Maureen Young, acting director of community leadership at Coast Capital Savings said the credit union is making the donation to support those in need during the holidays, with an emphasis on helping young people.
“Coast Capital’s donation to our local food banks helps ensure that these families can focus on enjoying time together over the holiday season instead of worrying about where their next meal is coming from,” said Young in a press release.
According to the 2016 Hunger Count report from food banks across Canada, 32.2 per cent of all people that visited a food bank in British Columbia were 18 years old or younger.
Despite the subtle 0.7 per cent increase, it still represents the highest percentage of young people visiting the food bank since in a decade.
Laura Lansink, executive director of Food Banks B.C., was thrilled with the donations across the province.
“Because of Coast Capital’s generous donation of $75,000, 150,000 individuals will not be facing an empty shelf,” she said in a press release. “That gives us an exceptional boost in our ability to meet the needs of our members as demand grows over the holiday season.”
In 2016, 103,464 people in British Columbia visited a food bank, according to Hunger Count. More than half of all food banks in B.C. (54.4 per cent) reported an increase in traffic.
trevor.beggs@surreynowleader.com
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