Can you help, please?

A call-out to the local community

When Joyce closes the door at night it’s cold, dark and the food has all gone. There won’t be any more until tomorrow and, even then, only if a kind person donates it.

But Joyce has a glow in her heart because she knows that she has done a valuable day’s work and made a real difference to the lives of dozens of families.

The door she closes is at Oldtown Food Bank, where she works as a volunteer. She sorts donations, packs food parcels, and works in the charity shop that helps to finance the Food Bank.

‘It’s wonderful to give something back,’ says Joyce, who has lived in Oldtown 30 years. ‘I’ve made so many new friends volunteering, from the families that we help and the people that come in the shop.’

With a 128 per cent increase in need in five years, the demand for food bank volunteers like Joyce has never been greater. ‘I got involved after my neighbour fell ill and needed help,’ she explains.

But she worries the bank will disappear without people to run it. ‘Everyone should get involved. Please come and help, even if it’s only an hour. You won’t regret it!’