Some Springwater Township residents will be seeing red this week, but it will all be for a good cause.
Local Purolator employees recently delivered 12,000 red bags to doorsteps in the Stone Manor Woods neighbourhood, located just west of Barrie, as part of the company’s Red Bag campaign, a fundraising initiative for the Barrie Food Bank.
The Red Bag Campaign was launched in 2019 as a way to allow employees to have a more direct connection with their community, explained Purolator spokesperson Emily Innes-Leroux. However, this will mark the first time the campaign has been run in the Barrie area.
This year marks the company’s 20th year of running its Tackle Hunger campaign, an employee-led initiative that supports food banks across the country and has collected more than 20 million pounds of non-perishable food from coast-to-coast, she added. The Red Bag Campaign is simply part of the overall initiatives.
The red bags were dropped off Saturday, Sept. 16 and are typically picked up by volunteers a week later.
“Our employees and the food bank volunteers go out and deliver the red bags to doorsteps to select neighbourhoods based on different criteria. We have inserts explaining what they’re supporting and the different items the food bank is looking for,” Innes-Leroux said.
Residents can then leave filled red bags on their doorstep before 9 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 23 for volunteers to pick up and deliver to the local food bank.
“I think it’s a great idea. Other people have done things in smaller communities on a smaller scale, mostly neighbourhoods, and it’s worked really well," said Barrie Food Bank executive director Sharon Palmer. "I know it’s a great way to rally the community and provide a great sense of community in terms of everybody participating.
"It really gives that sense that this community is supporting the food bank. We are looking forward to seeing what they can achieve," Palmer added.
Campaigns like this, said Innes-Leroux, are a great opportunity for Purolator employees to help in a small way in the communities they serve.
“It’s a way that we like to give back. Our employees are very passionate about this … and something that they volunteer their time for," she said. "This is such an important cause right now, given that there is an increase in hunger in the community and that the need is really rising. It’s something we are all very passionate about and there are champions that really lead the charge and make it happen.”
Anyone who may have missed the pick-up deadline is welcome to drop off their food donations at a Purolator Shipping Centre.
Residents who did not get a bag are invited to support by donating at www.barriefoodbank.org/donating.
