CFUW Southport President Odette Bartnicki and Program Chair Lorraine Boucher presented Nikki Thompson, Senior Family Service Worker with Saugeen Shores Family and Community Services Food Bank with non-perishable and personal items and a cash donation. Image supplied.

On Valentine's Day, February 14, 2024, the Southport chapter of Canadian Foundation of University Women (CFUW) contributed non-perishable and personal items as well as over $400 in cash to the Saugeen Shores Family and Community Services Food Bank (SSFB).

Senior Family Service Worker with SSFB, Nikki Thompson, informed CFUW Southport that the number of people regularly using the food bank jumped from 300 at the end of 2023 to 400 in January of 2024.

Over the past year, CFUW members have investigated the topic of food insecurity, hosting expert speakers and doing research on the topic," read a recent media release from CFUW Southport, "and while we are aware that food banks are a temporary solution to a larger problem, including the need for living wage legislation, inadequate housing supply and struggling funding for social services, we are also aware that these challenges impact women, children and seniors in our own community most profoundly."

In addition to the SSFB donation, CFUW Southport participated in the United Way's Coldest Night of the Year on Saturday, February 24 and raised $3,000 which will benefit those who desperately need housing, food and other services in Saugeen Shores.