Care home residents and staff in Elstow have made a generous donation to Bedford Food Bank as part of their community outreach programme.
The donation by Elstow Manor Care Home in Wixams included food and goodies to help fill the one hundred food parcels handed out but the charity each week.
Each parcel provides a minimum of three days of nutritionally balanced, tinned and dried food, all donated by the local community.
“At Elstow Manor we live in this lovely community, and I certainly feel very lucky to be able to enjoy this time in my life,” said 91-year-old Eileen Bennett, who is a resident at Elstow Manor.
“But things are not always easy in life and sometimes we all need a bit of help. So, what better way to get involved in our community than helping people who may be going through difficult times.
“We hope our small contribution will make life just a little bit easier for someone,” she said.
Bedford Foodbank is part of a nationwide network of food banks run by the Trussell Trust that helps those in need, for whatever reason.
Read: All our articles about Bedford Food Bank
“People can hit a food crisis for a whole number of reasons,” said Richard Brown, assistant project manager at Bedford Food Bank.
“It may be because work has fallen through, illness or an issue around benefits. Whatever it is, we are here to help and very grateful for food donations.”
Like many charities, pressures on the food bank increased during the pandemic with Bedford seeing a rise from 60 to 100 parcels being collected each week.
It has also been reported recently that with cuts to universal credit, food banks are expecting to see an increase in demand.
“Last week alone we handed over 62 parcels through the Salvation Army alone,” added Richard.
And while this donation from Elstow Manor Care Home has been gratefully received, Richard encouraged Bedfordians to continue supporting them.
“We could not do our work and contribute to the community without donations such as this,” he said.
Elstow Manor manager Sarah Hancock added: “We are very proud of our home and the community we serve.
“We are delighted that we can make a small difference to those individuals who are struggling during these challenging times.”
To find out more about Bedford Food Bank or to see how you can support them, visit bedford.foodbank.org.uk.
