40 Days for 40 Years: A Lenten Calendar of Giving
Instead of giving up for lent, simply give.
Over the 40-day season of Lent, when many people of the Christian faith choose to make a sacrifice in the days leading up to Easter Sunday, the Food Bank is asking that rather than “giving up” something for Lent, that people simply “give”.
With the Christmas season of giving well over, and the peak month of March looming on the horizon, it is an important time to make donations to the Food Bank, as inventory in some areas is already dipping below desired levels.
“Call-outs” have aleady begun.
When inventory runs low on certain items, the marketing team is asked to send a “call-out” to the community on social media asking for help to top up levels of product. This begins to happen more frequently later in the year as stock from Christmas and spring food drives start to dwindle. However, the Food Bank had to already make one such request, on behalf of the youngest of our clients: children.
“We are out of school snacks,” said Mitch Thomson, Executive Director of the Food Bank. “Typically that’s something we find we have enough to get through the school year as we get into the Winter Break. We make up school snack packs for families with kids in school - granola bars, juice boxes, fruit cups or fruit roll-ups that make for those convenient ‘top up’ items to help kids get through long school days. But we are completely out already.”
January reached new records.
In January 2014, the Red Deer Food Bank distributed 401 hampers to families in Red Deer, serving 192 families, consisting of 554 adults and 379 children.
In January of 2024, it distributed 1,115 hampers to 499 families, made up of 1,651 adults and 1,087 children.
This is why it was a welcome suggestion when a member of the community contacted us to request we do another promotion, “like the advent calendar you did at Christmas”. With Lent coming up, and the 40-day time frame, it was an ideal fit.
You can follow the daily “roll call” of items on our social media channels on Facebook, Instagram & X. We are also posting “summary calendars” to capture 10 days worth of items (see below).
Remember: These items are needed all year round, not just over Lent. Even if you are finding this information now, you can print off these lists and keep them as a reference for future donations. Thank you.
Calendar of Giving: Days 1 - 10
Calendar of Giving: Days 11 - 20