It will take more than vandalism to shake the Lord’s Bounty Food Bank.
Five months after quietly opening the doors of their new home base on Hiawatha Avenue, the Lord’s Bounty Food Bank held their grand opening on May 4.
The event was held despite an incident that caused damage to the building days earlier.
In anticipation of the grand opening event, repairs were made around the building, including brand new front doors. At some point on April 30, unknown assailants damaged the doors, only hours after they’d been installed.
“They dented all the doors in, like they took a rock and put dents into them. They also broke one of the safety glass panes,” said food bank vice-chair Alison Dallas-Funk.
The assailant left the scene without getting inside the building. No food items or property were taken.
After posting about the incident on social media, offers to help came in fast. Eventually, a community member ended up fixing the door for free, using materials donated from a Flin Flon business.
“I was actually shocked. I had so many messages from people offering help, offering surveillance. I had one gentleman saying he’d come in and measure everything up. He came in on Tuesday,” said Dallas-Funk.
With the sudden repair work now complete, the food bank can get back to its main purpose – providing fresh, healthy food for those who need it.
The charity’s new building, located in the former home of the St. Mary’s Ukrainian Catholic Church, has been extensively remodeled and includes a brand new test kitchen in the rear.
“From a volunteering standpoint, it’s a more cheerful place to come to. We have windows – we’ve never had windows before. It’s larger. It’s a more welcoming space, which makes everybody want to be here more,” said Dallas-Funk.
Other community groups have already reached out to use the facility, including to use the kitchen and space. Cooking classes in the test kitchen are in the works, as well as a garden plot on the site.
Beds for the garden are under construction, with planting and seeding to follow later this spring.
The group also received a grant from the Northern Neighbours Foundation to help organize classes.
Dallas-Funk said a set of security cameras would be installed at the building this summer after the damage done last week.
Dallas-Funk said one big change for the program is that people who use the food bank are now helping organize classes and events for food bank users.
“What has changed is that some of the people who are using the food bank are coming and volunteering now. That didn’t happen before. I think this new space has changed that, which is great. That’s a huge step, and that’s something we wanted. The fact we have a larger space means we can serve more people,” she said.
