On Wednesday, March 29, volunteers from the Sydenham Food Bank will be hosting a spaghetti dinner for the community, to help raise funds for the food bank.

The Community Spaghetti Dinner will be held from 4:30 to 7:00pm on Wednesday, March 29th, at Grace Hall, 4295 Stage Coach Road in Sydenham. Tickets are on sale now, at $10 for adults and $5 for children under 12, and are available at Southern Frontenac Community Services office, and are being sold by food bank volunteers.

“We wanted to do something fun for the community,” says Janet McComb, a food bank volunteer, “so we thought a pasta dinner would be a simple, good idea.” The dinner includes choice of spaghetti or penne, meat or marinara sauce, salad, bread, desserts and beverages. Says McComb: “We’ll even have take-out available so you can take the night off from cooking.”

As well as being a low-key night out, the Spaghetti Dinner is a way to raise profile and funds for the food bank. Food Bank Coordinator Vicki England says; “the food bank serves about 50 families each month. Our community is terrific at supporting it with donations and food drives. But there are other costs to operate the food bank.” Funds raised from the dinner will be put towards construction of an accessible ramp.

“One of the big challenges we have now that the food bank has moved to its new location at the Grace Centre site, is having an accessible entrance to allow clients and volunteers with physical barriers the ability to access the service. A ramp is also helpful for loading food donations,” says England.

The cost for constructing a ramp is estimated to be at least $10,000. “This event will help us raise some money, and we’ll have a 50-50 draw as well. It’s a start,” says McComb, “we hope that everyone will come out and just enjoy themselves.”

Kim Perry of Food Less Traveled (Local Family Farms) in Verona got into the Canada 150 spirit a little early. Starting last December, and every month of this year, she is putting on a promotion to benefit the food banks in Sydenham and Sharbot Lake. In December she put a special price on meat pies, and for each sale she also set one aside for the food bank. Last week, she travled from Verona all the way to Sydenham to deliver the pies to the South Frontenac Community Services Food bank. In January the special was on ground beef, produced at the Perry Anjou family farm. Can’t get more local than that.

Check out Local Famuily farms at 6674 Road 38 in Verona.

Christmas Box Time in Loughborough 

Sydenham Lion Joanne Ankers presented a cheque for $1,000 to Sue Clinton, for the Loughborough Christmas and Emergency Relief Committee. (LCERC).

For the past 28 years, the LCERC has been preparing Christmas baskets for Loughborough and area families in need. This year, 73 baskets will go out, each containing the ingredients for a traditional Christmas dinner, along with a few treats, and a book and a gift for each child. Throughout the rest of the year, the fund is available for relief in cases of emergency, such as house fires. 

Because LCERC works in liaison with Southern Frontenac Community Services by receiving referrals, and uses Grace Hall to organize the actual Christmas boxes, people often confuse the two agencies. But LCERC is a completely separate, non-profit group of only five Sydenham residents (Bev McNeil, Sue Clinton, Lisa Holmes, Jim Kelly and Peter Stewart).

It’s a great example of what can be accomplished by a few determined and hard-working individuals. All their money comes from local donations, and they provide tax receipts; it’s still not too late to send them a donation. They do call in some extra volunteers in the last week before Christmas to help sorting and packing the rows and rows of boxes that fill the huge hall.

On Thursday, December 22nd, the committee was working in earnest, assembling orders, lining up brightly coloured mittens, and boxes of toys to be ready for the special day, when families came to gather their goodies for Christmas. By 2:30, the Grace Centre Hall was full of colour, the boxes already, save for the Turkey’s and other perishable items that got delivered the next day, just in time for Christmas

Kim Cucoch of the North Frontenac Food Bank, flanked by members of the OPP Auxiliary at the fall 'stuff the cruiser' event in front of Mike Deans Grocery store in Sharbot Lake, on Saturday, October 29. A steady stream of store customers made food and cash donations from 10 until 2. The cruiser needed to be emptied more than once as food kept accumulating.

Gardening season is approaching and so is the second season to Share your Fare. Share Your Fare is a community-based initiative that encourages people who have gardens to donate some of their fresh produce to people who do not. Fresh produce is collected and distributed by existing organizations and programs in Frontenac County.

Share Your Fare is an integrated network for food sharing that fosters sustainability and interconnectedness, and promotes health in our community. It is also for existing programs and groups that want to strengthen their relationships with the surrounding community.

Just a Little: One head of lettuce, a few tomatoes or a handful of carrots is a wonderful contribution. No amount is too small. Together, we can make a difference. Larger amounts are also welcome.

It's Easy: Drop-off locations are open multiple days of the week. Bring something with you when you go to, or through, Sharbot Lake.

Keep Growing: This is just the beginning. Share Your Fare closer to home in your own community. Organizations and programs throughout Frontenac County are encouraged to participate. Churches, community centres and organized groups make excellent drop-off and distribution locations. To enquire about or register a new location, e-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Businesses are encouraged to participate. Put your small (or large) spaces to work. Grow a plant or few. Businesses can receive a free tomato plant to get started. Come to the Sharbot Lake Farmers Market on May 21. A 10% discount on seeds will also be given that day, in exchange for a pledge to contribute once during the season to Share Your Fare. Come and sign our pledge poster, even if you are not purchasing seeds. Show people; tell people; talk to people about Share Your Fare. Reap what you sow.

Drop-off locations in Sharbot Lake:

Mondays, 9am-3pm – Aboriginal Resource Centre, 24719 Hwy #7, Fresh produce will be distributed to individuals and families, and used at community meals and gatherings. Freezer is available for storing larger amounts.

Tuesdays, 9:30-10am – North Frontenac Food Bank. Fresh produce will be distributed in food baskets.

10-11:30am – Seniors Centre, 1042 Elizabeth St. Fresh produce will be used to prepare food for meals on wheels, and for use at the Seniors Centre. Freezer space for larger amounts is available.

1-4pm – Northern Frontenac Community Services. Fresh produce will be used in meals prepared for the drop-in program, and be distributed to individuals and families.

Thursdays, 8-9:30am – Seniors Centre, 1042 Elizabeth St.

9am-5pm – Medical Centre. Fresh produce will be used in the Good Food Box program, and be distributed to individuals and families.

Fridays, 9:30-10am – North Frontenac Food Bank

10-3pm – Medical Centre

Saturdays – Cardinal Cafe

Add your location today! E-mail This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Auxiliary constables from the Frontenac OPP detachment were out in full force for their Stuff the Cruiser events in Verona and Sydenham on March 12. With their cruiser lights flashing, their hopes were to attract the goodwill of local shoppers. Their goal - to swell the coffers of the South Frontenac Food Bank. With Easter weekend fast approaching, OPP Constables Jennifer Robertson and Brendan Pilow filled their cruiser two times over and also received numerous cash donations as well. Harrowsmith resident Elizabeth Hilton was more than happy to purchase a pre-packaged food donation bag from Reid’s Foodland in Verona for her donation. “Everybody hits the food bank at some point and it’s important to make sure that the food bank has everything they need because they need it badly,” she said. 

I chose the above words to appear on my ski wear as I participated in the annual international 51 km x-country ski competition in the Gatineau Hills on Feb 27 in order to raise money for SFCSC Food Bank Healthy Snacks Program.

Thank you service clubs, church groups, restaurants, Southern Frontenac Community Services staff, fellow volunteers, board members, and old and young friends. Together through our sponsorships, we raised $2770 for the program, which will now be able to continue this year.

The weather and conditions were kind to this old 75-year-old this year. For 15 years I have had a special chosen place on the course where I pause to admire a breath-taking vista. Always the question occurs to me “Why me”? There have been years when tears froze on my face during my reflection. I have been blessed with a kind aging process and good health. “Please allow me to come back to this special place one more time”.

I was motivated to use my ski adventure as a fundraiser for the SFCSC food bank partly because of a community need, and partly because of some disturbing statistics for the year 2015 published by Canada Food banks, and the Ontario Association of Food banks:

• 850,000 people accessed food banks monthly in Canada.

• 360,000 people accessed food banks monthly in Ontario.
• One third of the above numbers were children.
• One in three jobs in Ontario are full time. The remainder are part time or contract, with little or no benefits, and less wages.

The above are just some of the disturbing stats. Unaffordable housing, and the rising food prices are contributing factors to the prediction that over a million people will have to access food banks in this year of 2016…in Canada.

Our children are Canada’s most important natural resource; each child is unique. Each may see our world differently. Each may be innovative accordingly. To preserve that innovation, we need to continue to insure that each child reaches their maximum potential in the growing years. This means all children should have proper nutrition. Dreams are the foundation of reality. No child should be deprived of the right to dream.

Thank you again to supporters of SFCSC Food Bank Healthy Snacks Program fundraiser.  

Members of the student council at Sydenham High School have been busy heading up a holiday food drive at the school to support the South Frontenac Food Bank. Four members of the student council, including co-presidents, Will Sanderson and Annie Preston, and ministers of outreach and charity, Rachel Don and Morgan Arthur, have been accepting food donations in a number of large gift-wrapped boxes in the school's main foyer. To date, close to 600 items have been collected and in an effort to encourage as many donations as possible, the school's four colour house teams entered into a competition to see who could make the most donations. To further encourage donations, individual students received a ballot for every three donations they gave, which they can enter into a raffle that will take place on December 17. The winner will take home a Sydenham Swag Bag valued at $45.

That same day the students will be delivering the food directly to the food bank. Co-president Sanderson said that one of the aims of the drive is also to raise awareness about issues of local poverty and hunger. With that in mind, Rachel Don and Morgan Arthur made numerous announcements citing facts about hunger and poverty, and individual grade reps also spoke to individual classrooms about these issues. As well, a number of posters were hung throughout the school. The four student council members also spoke every morning to arriving students about local poverty issues.

In April, 2016, the students at the school will be focusing their efforts on global poverty issues and will be holding their 30-Hour Famine event, which will coincide with a second school-wide food drive. Hats off to the students of SHS who have demonstrated that everyone can make a difference in the lives of local residents in need.

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On November 21, several friends got together at the Sydenham Legion for a family and friends event, calling it “Keeping it Local”. Proceeds from the event, totalling $630 were presented to the SFCSC Food Bank from the event organizers, Nicki Mundell and Ashley Reynolds. A total of seven families were instrumental in organizing the event and wanting to support local agencies helping local residents. Many thanks to Nicki Mundell & Andrew Watson, Ashley & Kyle Reynolds, Shannon & Chris Bowes, Josh & Nicole Revell, Farrah and Adam Heska, Felicia & Matt Dowker and Lisa & Jordan Livermore.

Southern Frontenac Community Services held an open house on December 1, to kick off a month-long fund raising campaign for its food bank, which serves South Frontenac and rural Kingston (south to the 401). Their goal for December is $25,000.  

The CP Holiday Train is due to arrive in Belleville on November 30! Bring the family to this annual Christmas event with a donation of food or cash to support the Land O’Lakes Food Bank.

The train will arrive at Mile 91 Belleville Sub, west of storage facility, on Keegan Way adjacent to CP Tracks at 10am, and Devin Cuddy and Kelly Prescott will present a Christmas concert from 10:15 - 10:45 a.m.

The Canadian Pacific’s annual Holiday Train program is a rolling fundraising event that travels across Canada and the United States raising money, food, and awareness for food banks and hunger issues, hosting free holiday concerts along the way. Since 1999 the program has raised over C$10.6 million and 3.6 million pounds of food. Each Holiday Train is about 1000 feet in length with 14 rail cars decorated with hundreds of thousands of technology-leading LED lights and a modified box car that has been turned into a traveling stage for performers.

Land O’Lakes Food Bank is a member of the Quinte Regional Food Share Shelter (QRFSS), which is a collective of nine area food banks. The CP Holiday Train is one of the main fundraisers for the QRFSS and each member food bank gets a portion of the funds raised based on its use. Your support of the CP Holiday Train is support for the Land O’Lakes Food Bank operating out of Cloyne.

In 2001 the Quinte Region Food Share Shelter (QRFSS) was formed; it is a registered charity.

Food Bank Canada introduced this initiative to ensure that rural food banks could access food at a central warehouse and reduce shipping cost. The QRFSS is a collective of 9 area food banks that address the needs of many families and individuals in need throughout the Tri-County Region. This region includes food banks, meal programs and non-profit agencies in the following counties: Hastings, Prince Edward and Northumberland. The QRFSS is also a member of the Canadian & Ontario Association of Food Banks. Food banks are located in Brighton, Belleville, Cloyne, Loyalist College, Madoc, Mamora, Picton, Stirling and Wellington.

The QRFSS member food banks meet quarterly to discuss daily operations, fundraising and for fellowship. The largest food bank in this collective is Gleaners Food Bank of Belleville. Gleaners set up the Tri-County Food Network Warehouse to ensure donated food could be delivered to this region. This warehouse serves the QRFSS members, community meal program, school snack programs, and 150 non-profit agencies. (gleanersfoodbank.ca)