Towards fulfillment of the mitzvah of giving mishloach manot for Purim, GRS collected donations of toiletries and nonperishable foods for the East Renfrewshire Foodbank. On 16 March Eileen Carroll took our donations to the Foodbank. The donations we collected can be seen in the pictured shopping trolley.
The carrier bags are those ready for collection. Parcels are prepared for singletons, couples, small families and larger families.
The other photos show the different types of items collected.
A very interesting trip indeed, and hopefully will give our members a sense of tikun olam!
Update: Eileen has requested that the letter she received from the East Renfrewshire Foodbank be shared:
Tuesday 21 March 2017
Dear Eileen Carroll,
We have been overwhelmed by the support from so many people in East Renfrewshire – (Barrhead, Neilston, Newton Mearns, Giffnock, Eaglesham, Clarkston, Busby, Stamperland and Thornliebank) – representing Churches, Schools, Local Authority employees, Supermarkets and individuals.
The ER Foodbank, based in Barrhead, has been in action for 3½ years. Recently numbers have been increasing and on average we distribute parcels to about 30 people per week. To date we have fed almost 4,000 people.
As a group of volunteers we feel that a rich country such as ours should not have people so needy that they require food parcels but unfortunately many are on low incomes and, as such, their circumstances are not going to change any time soon.
Your food donation totalled 44kg and will feed 4 single people for three days.
I’m sorry I did not meet you but I believe Stanley Esson our Warehouse Manager had the privilege of speaking to you. I hope you enjoyed seeing the orderly stock of food and some of the work in progress.
Please convey to all concerned in your Synagogue our thanks and appreciate for this kind donation to those in need.
Yours sincerely,
Ag Law, Coordinator ER Foodbank