Mayor helps fill food bank shelves

Lower Hutt Mayor Ray Wallace helped fill empty food bank shelves with donations of $2000 to the Wainuiomata Food Bank and $1000 to the Hutt City Food Bank.

“The shelves at the Wainuiomata Food Bank were virtually empty,” said Mayor Wallace. “There are a lot of people who finding it hard to make ends meet.”

The Mayor is a trustee of a community philanthropic trust which funded the donation.
Chrissy Wilson, who runs the Wainuiomata food bank, said donations of food have been low at a time when genuine demand is on the rise.

“People from all walks of life are coming here for food and the Mayor’s donation will allow us to buy bulk items such as flour and sugar together with other essentials.

“We are often the last stop for families who cannot afford food after paying all their bills,” she said.
Pastor at the Life City Church in Wainuiomata, which operates the food bank, Awhina Valine, said a recent drive for donations failed to generate enough to feed those in need.

“The generous donation by the Mayor will carry us over till we have another drive next month,” she said.
“We have a very strict criteria for assessing those who receive food and, after two visits, they are required to undergo budgeting. In every case there has been genuine need,” she said.