Trick or Eat Puts Food on the Table
October 29, 2010 - News Release
Costume-clad University of Guelph students will be going door-to-door on Halloween, collecting canned food instead of candy as part of Trick or Eat, a food drive that supports 19 community organizations in Guelph. Last year, more than 1,500 students collected over 17,000 kilograms of food worth an estimated $70,000.
“One in five people in Guelph are hungry or food insecure — that’s about 18,000 people,” said Brittany Watson, education and promotion co-ordinator for the University branch of Meal Exchange, a national student-driven charity that targets hunger and poverty in Canada.
Students also donate cash or their meal points to the Skip a Meal program; meal points are converted to cash and used to purchase food for local agencies.
“One hundred per cent of our proceeds are donated to local agencies,” said Watson.
Students will also deliver the food to the agencies, which include food banks, shelters and neighbourhood groups.
Items in greatest demand are pasta, rice, baby food and formula, powdered milk, and canned fruits, vegetables, meat and soup. Watson hopes U of G students will collect many of these items when they visit Guelph neighbourhoods Oct. 31.
She added that a $10 donation to Meal Exchange or the Guelph Food Bank can feed a family of four and that no donation is too small.
“Every can of food we receive, every dollar raised, is another bit of food that goes to these organizations that are in dire need of them.”
Students will meet in their costumes in the University Centre at 4 p.m. Sunday. There will be bands, guest speakers and a costume contest before they load on to buses to head downtown.
For more information, send email to Meal Exchange at meal@uoguelph.ca or call 519-824-4120, Ext. 58212.
For media questions, contact Communications and Public Affairs: Lori Bona Hunt, at 519-824-4120, Ext. 53338, or lhunt@uoguelph.ca, or Deirdre Healey, Ext. 56982 or dhealey@uoguelph.ca.
