Tuesday, November 20, 2012

‘City of Caring’ call as Food Bank launches

PROTESTANT and Catholic Churches in Londonderry have joined forces to create a ‘Food Bank’ to help the rising number of people suffering from hardship.


The Food Bank is to operate as a vehicle specifically designed to help alleviate need in households within the city where one-off assistance, such as a week’s groceries, will relieve financial stress due to the economic downturn, without compromising a family’s dignity, thus allowing them to meet other bills.

The Food Bank is to become operational at the end of November, and initially will operate as a pilot scheme in the Cityside among St Eugene’s Catholic Church Parish and the Church of Ireland Parish group of Christ Church, Culmore, Muff and St. Peter’s (CCCMP). 

A committee has been set up on a cross-community basis to run the scheme, and if successful, it will be rolled out into the Waterside area too.

Modelled on a similar scheme in Belfast, the Food Bank initiative sprang from “an awareness of need” according to a spokesperson for St Eugene’s Cathedral, who said: “This initiative has grown quite naturally from an awareness of need within our city and arose from conversations in which we wanted to do something positive for our neighbours”.

The pilot project is still being refined, but Archdeacon Robert Miller, who has pastoral control over the CCCMP Grouped Parishes, said: “In this City of Culture Year we want to encourage a culture of caring for our neighbours throughout our community.”

The Archdeacon said the Food Bank was based on a similar project set up in Belfast, called the Store House, the aim of which was to provide emergency relief in terms of food parcels.

Archdeacon Miller went on to say that in addition to his Grouped Parishes and St Eugene’s, there were other organisations involved in the Food Bank, including the Churches Trust.

“The Church of Ireland Diocesan vision is ‘Transforming Community: Radiating Christ’. One of the big challenges in any community at the moment is the effect of the economic downturn on ordinary people. This is a way of alleviating need in a specific way for somebody not used to having to struggle with money. The Food Bank can support them and allow then to survive without having to lose their dignity,” the Archdeacon said.

He said the Food Bank was a positive means of allowing people to be supported: “This is a short term help to somebody who is experiencing a particular aspect of need. By providing their groceries for one week it will maybe allow them to get over a hump.”

The focus is on collecting non-perishable and tinned goods, said the Archdeacon, adding: “The response so far has been fantastic. There should be a culture of caring within any community. The City of Culture will be bringing a lot of positive things, but the drama of ordinary everyday challenges is still there and this is about alleviating some of those challenges.”