Adam Prudhomme
Beaver Staff
Trick-or-treaters could be collecting more than just candy this Hallowe’en as volunteers with Morningstar Mission and the Salvation Army take part in a door-to-door food drive.
Volunteer drivers and canvassers are needed to help cover routes throughout Greater Napanee, which could make for the perfect family affair. Parents or guardians could collect food while taking their little ones door-to-door with their regular trick-or-treat routine.
“It’s not easy to get volunteers but it’s very efficient because people have their doors open for trick or treaters and are quite jovial and welcoming,” Kevin Alkenbrack, executive director with Morningstar Mission, said of an Oct. 31 food drive. “Canvassers that go door-to-door just go to the doors that are open or look for food on the steps that people have left out. I think people are more responsive on Hallowe’en.”
Anyone interested in helping out by collecting food is asked to call 613-354-6355 and to meet at the Morningstar Mission at 5 p.m. the night of the drive to get a route. Alkenbrack says it’s important that people register and get a designated route so as to avoid any duplication.
Half of the food collected that night will go to the mission with the other half to the Salvation Army.
“The food that we collect will take us now until May,” said Alkenbrack, noting their only other food drive is held in the spring.
Anything they receive could go a long way as they’ve seen their resources stretched thin over the last couple of months.
“With the rise of homelessness that we’ve seen in our community, we’ve seen an equal rise in requirements of the food bank,” said Alkenbrack.
For those who will be home handing out candy and looking to support the food drive, Alkenbrack says they are always in need of canned milk, school snacks, canned meat, Kraft Dinner, deodorant, shampoo, pet food and any canned good that has a tab as those in need don’t always have access to a can opener.
The canvassers will be out on Hallowe’en between the hours of 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Following the completion of their route, the volunteers are invited to a meal at the Morningstar Mission, which is located at 59 Water Street W in Napanee.