Aylmer Food Centre prepares to support families in need during holiday season

Sophie Demers

The Aylmer Food Centre (CAA) is hard at work preparing for one of their major annual projects, the 17th edition of the Christmas Share Store. The project provides over 150 families in Aylmer with a full cart worth of food at a fraction of the retail price, between 5% and 10%, as well as a gift for each child, specific to their age and gender.

This large project aims to help families have a special holiday season with quality food at an affordable price. Gérard Émond, General Manager of CAA, highlights that the increased price of groceries this year is especially difficult for families in need.

Volunteers and employees start gathering food and monetary donations and preparing for the Christmas Share store months in advance. Families are presented with a list of 55 items for them to select what they need, and the CAA will arrange a time to deliver the package to their home. The distribution of the packages will take place from December 20 to 22.

“Despite the increased price of groceries, our families will still benefit with the same amount and quality of food as in previous years,” said Émond. “We have remarkable volunteers who help us. We are so thankful for the Aylmer community, local businesses, and organizations for their generosity with donations. This wouldn’t be possible without them.”

This year the Société de Transport de L'Outaouais (STO) has lent the CAA a place at the corner of Vanier and des Allumettières.

In 2021, the event helped 191 families. There were 50 volunteers who helped prepare for the event, and that amounted to 950 hours of volunteer work. The CAA distributed 179,873 kilos of food in the past year, which is worth approximately $1,577,486.

The organization's mission is to develop initiatives to meet the food needs of the Aylmer community, while offering front-line social assistance services. They also offer used winter clothing to children, along with various other initiatives.

The food centre depends on help and donations, and all residents are encouraged to support them in any way they can during this holiday season. Residents interested in donating can do so on the CAA’s website https://www.centrealimentaireaylmer.org/faire-un-don.html

Photo credit: Aylmer Bulletin Archives.

Photo caption: Volunteers from the 2020 Christmas share store event.