Food Bank of York Region volunteer collects 9,186 pounds of food donations through food drive initiatives

FBYR recognized Emma Dagher as 'February Volunteer of the Month'.

yorkregion.com
Aileen Zangouei
Feb. 25, 2022

The Food Bank of York Region (FBYR) celebrated one of its volunteers as February Volunteer of the Month for her dedicated service in the past year raising food donations.

Emma Dagher, has spent the last year running a community food security initiative of weekly food drive collections for the FBYR. She has been involved in eight full-time and three seasonal unique local businesses that encourage their customers in the community to participate in donating non-perishable food items toward her weekly food drives.

On the side of running the food drives and welcoming food donations, Dagher also travels to each donation station every Friday and picks them up and drops them off at the FBYR where they are sorted, packed and delivered.

"We're so happy to have Emma as part of our volunteer team. Her community service helps our food bank feed more people throughout York region," said Sarah Smith, community relations manager at FBYR.

In the last year, Dagher has managed to collect and donate 9,186 pounds of food, equating to just over $20,000 in food donations, which went on to help the FBYR deliver more than 70,000 meals throughout its network of more than 80 agencies.

Dagher said she started this initiative with the goal of making a small impact in the community. "I hadn't thought about how long I would continue to collect donations, but I never expected it would be part of my routine one year later," said Dagher.

"It feels incredible that with the help of so many wonderful people, I'm still able to make an impact in our community," she added.

Participating local businesses in Aurora, Richmond Hill and Markham that contributed to Emma's food drive initiative are as follows: Lifespring Physiotherapy, St. Andrew’s Chiropractic and Wellness, Pro Motion Physiotherapy, Aurora Athletic Club, Café Andes, Aurora Tigers, Pulsar’s Gymnastics, Powell Constriction and three Healthy Planet locations.

"We thanks and commend all these local businesses for their effort and dedication to fighting food insecurity and promoting donation collection for the FBYR," a Feb. 17 FBYR media release states.

"The Lifespring Physiotherapy team has been happy to partner with Emma Dagher on collecting donations for the Food Bank of York Region. We know that now more than ever people are having to rely on the food bank,” said Stephanie Lobraico, community liaison at Lifespring Physiotherapy. "It has been an honour and privilege to work with such an incredible young woman who is truly making a difference in our community, especially during the pandemic."

To the FBYR, initiatives like Dagher's are "vital" to their success in community food security outreach efforts.

"We need committed community members like Emma to host initiatives like hers on a regular and constant basis. If she can provide this much support as just one person, the sky is the limit for future opportunities," the media release states.

For more information on how to get involved with a food drive or fundraiser in support of the FBYR and its network, visit fbyr.ca/food-or-fund-drives.

The FBYR is the regional food hub and mobile food pantry with a network of social service agencies and emergency home delivery programs operating in the nine municipalities of York region, serving more than 24,000 individuals in 7,000 households. The COVID-19 pandemic increased the number of people accessing food bank programs in York region by 42 per cent since 2018, the agency says.