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Community
Impact Report

2023-24

Together

We Are Putting Hope Back on the Table

We are excited to share our 2023/24 Community Impact Report with you. Inside, you’ll find highlights and achievements from the past year, stories from kids and families you have helped, and so much more.

It remained a challenging time for families across the province. The rising rent and food costs of the past few years continued, and we had more families on our recipient list than ever before. Many of these families had never before struggled to meet the needs of their kids. It takes courage to ask for help for the first time. We were humbled by the many BC families who trust us to provide consistent, stigma-free support.

Our community stepped up to face this challenge. You gave more than ever to meet the rising cost of food and continue providing backpacks full of nutritious food to children. With your help, more than 6,000 kids across 73 BC communities had full bellies each weekend. 

Your generosity brings relief to parents and offers stability to growing children, particularly those who rely on school meal programs or face  significant challenges at home. Sarah’s story on Page 8 shows this so well. We’d love for you to read it.

Everyday, we see the goodness and hope in our community. Thank you for the incredible impact you are making every day in the lives of BC children. With your help, we are one step closer to ensuring no BC child goes hungry.

Emily-anne King
Co-Founder & Executive Director

Geoff Pedlow, Chair
Annika Lofstrand, Director 
Justin Dhesi, Director
Patti Schom-Moffatt, Director
Shari Gale, Director
Vishad Deepaul, Director

Emily-anne King, Co-Founder & Executive Director
Joanne Griffiths, Co-Founder & Director of Strategic Partnerships
Lorraine Winchester, Director of Food Access
Tara-Kelly Andrews, Assistant Food Access Coordinator
Laara Losier, Program Coordinator – South Vancouver Island
Diane de Jong, Program Coordinator – North Vancouver Island
Melissa Gresley Jones, Program Coordinator – Central Kootenays
Lindsay Burke, Donor Relations
Tanya Barrie, Administrative Assistant and Donor Processing
Pat Jenkins, Warehouse & Transportation Manager
Kristoffer Fransson, Warehouse Supervisor
Jamie McCracken, Warehouse Associate
Shakeel Lalani, Warehouse Associate
Luke Porcellato, Warehouse Associate

Hunger doesn’t  take  the weekend off 

In 2023-24 we found ourselves with an
unprecedented waitlist of over 1000 kids

How we solve it

We partner with schools

Our weekly food deliveries are coordinated in partnership with teachers and administrators. They advise us on the needs of their students and confidently identify children who will benefit most from receiving a bag of food for the weekend.

We team up with donors

In 2023-24, every $20 donated provided a child with a bag of food for the weekend. We welcome companies, individuals and foundations to join our donor family.

We leverage purchasing power

With over 1.65 million meals passing through our warehouse this year, we leverage our significant purchasing power with large distributors to stretch every dollar. 

We feed hungry kids

Every bag of food we deliver is filled with meals and snacks to last the weekend. Items in our bags are kid-approved and ready-to-eat, and include items like hummus, tuna, seaweed snacks, and fresh fruit and veggies.

In the News

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Community Impact

Your Gifts in Action

Number of kids reached

Kids
Supported

6100

Communities
Reached

73

Schools
Reached

360

Backpacks
Filled

206,888

Pounds of Food
Delivered

939,996

Meals
Provided

1,655,104

Never Without Apples

Sarah and her family were in crisis.
Backpack Buddies was there.

Three years ago, life took a turn for Sarah Roberts and her family of four. Then it took another one. And another. 

Both Sarah’s father and her father-in-law died in quick succession. Around the same time, Sarah was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Suddenly, she was using a wheelchair, and found herself unable to grocery shop and cook. After the diagnosis, Sarah lost her job. Most of the family duties fell to her husband, who worked 13-hour days on a tugboat while struggling with his own chronic illness.

“We were a family in crisis. And we needed every bit of help that we could get anywhere,” she said.

That help came in the form of Backpack Buddies. An employee at their Gibsons Elementary School recognized that the family was struggling, and suggested they sign up. 

In the midst of so many challenges, Sarah appreciated how simple it was to access help—no red tape, no complicated forms. All she had to do was say yes and know that there would be food available for her girls, Paige, 9, and Brook, 11, each weekend. 

“In a world where every little bit helps, this is the bit that helps,” Sarah says. 

Brook uses the food she receives to experiment in the kitchen and build her culinary independence. This has been especially important for Sarah, who isn’t always able to help prepare food. 

Paige is less adventurous with her eating. She loves the apples the most. But it has been a relief for Sarah to know there is always a snack or simple meal available for both her girls.


“Thanks to Backpack Buddies, we’re never
100 percent apple-less”

— Sarah

Facing childhood hunger head on in the Comox Valley

Three years ago, life took a turn for Sarah Roberts and her family of four. Then it took another one. And another. 

In the Spring of 2021, two team members at Engel & Völkers Vancouver Island North, a real estate brokerage with offices in Courtenay and Campbell River, reached out to Backpack Buddies, asking how they could help bring the program to their community. 

When they floated the idea at the office, it didn’t take long to convince their own team to get
on board. 

“One sales meeting later, everyone said, ‘Ok, this is what we’re going to do,’” describes Laurenne Barnsley, who works as a conveyancer at the real estate company.

The team was aware that food scarcity for children was an issue in the Comox Valley, but for many, it was the first time they realized how deeply childhood hunger was affecting their island community. They jumped at the opportunity to help bring Backpack Buddies to northern Vancouver Island, starting with six local schools. 

Originally the organization signed on to donate the value of the bags each week for three months. Three years later, the agents still personally donate to ensure kids in their community have food to eat each weekend.

And they do more than help with funding. Once a week, the office receives a giant delivery of non-perishable foods, fresh produce, and snacks. The team of real estate agents and administrators work together to organize the food and distribute around 205 bags a week to seven schools. Some employees even bring their kids in to help.

“A lot of teamwork goes into it. Everyone 100% believes in it, and it brings a huge amount of enjoyment,” said Laurenne. “No one thinks it’s a chore.” 

Office administrator Jenny Harris, who coordinates the work with Backpack Buddies, said she has seen the need grow over the past three years. 

“We have more food, and more schools than when we started,” she said. “And the numbers are going up.”

“Kids shouldn’t have to worry about getting the food they need,” she said. “But we’re grateful to be part of Backpack Buddies. We love doing it.” 

Financials

Donors

Thank you to our community of hunger heroes – your generous support is changing the lives of BC kids! 

Adi Mudaliar & Aviva Ara Zbar
Aecon Construction – 
 Major Projects Civil West
Allen and Loreen Vandekerkhove 
 Family Foundation
Alta Dental Studio
Altenburg Painting
Amacon Management Services Corp
Ames Family Foundation
Amir & Yasmin Family Foundation
Aura Office & Tenant Talks
Aviva Canada
Bandrastra Transportation
Beedie Foundation
Benefaction Foundation
Board of Education School District 
 No. 38 (Richmond)
Caroline Chuba
Century Group Lands Corporation
CFAX Santas Anonymous Society
Chris Spencer Foundation
City of North Vancouver
Clifford and Carolyn Davis
Coast Capital Savings
Cornerstone College
Cummins
Deloitte
Corporation of the District of 
 North Vancouver
Dominion Lending Centres, 
 A Better Way Mortgages
Dr. Shannon R. Samler Inc
East to West Leasing
Equitable Bank
Face The World Foundation
Fasken Martineau Dumoulin LLP
First West Foundation
FreeYumm Foods
Gail Pozniak
Galloway Botteselle & Co
Garth Burak
Gateway Casinos & Entertainment

Happy Kids
Headwater Living Inc.
Herbaland Naturals Inc.
Ivan & Laurie Gasoi Fund
James Tan
Jo-Ann Allard
Kayla Pope and Saumil Parikh
Keystone Environmental
Kiewit Vancouver
Koru Pacific Foundation
Krogseth Foundation
Landon Barretto
LiUNA Local 1611
Medina
Meridian OneCap Credit Corp
Michael David Corday
Mid Island Consumers Services
Co-operative
Mount Seymour Resorts
NAP Professional Corporation
Nathan King
Nature’s Path Foods
Nicola Wealth Private
Giving Foundation
Norgaard Foundation
Northshore Waterfront Gala:
Fibreco, Neptune, Pembina,
Seaspan, Western
Pamela Mooney
Patti & Wes Goss
PCI King George Developments Inc.
Phillips Brewing Company
Phyliss and Irving Snider Foundation
PI Financial
Progressive Sealing Inc
Provincial Employees Community
Services Fund
RBC Foundation
Regional Recycling
Rich & Linda Kathleen Simons Fund
Richard Cole Private Giving Fund
Richelle Newson
Robert Allan Ltd.
Sandy’s Furniture
Smythe LLP
Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller,
Victoria Commandery
Staub Electronics Ltd.
Stikeman Elliott LLP
Storkcraft
Sysco Vancouver

TD Bank Group
Telus Friendly Future Foundation
The 1988 Foundation
The Answer Company
The Clever Savage Group: Erik
Clevering, Kelsey Savage, and Cathy
Evans
The Grocery Foundation
The Lumira Foundation (c/o
Lumira Ventures)
The Morris and Helen Belkin
Foundation
The Palmer Family Foundation
The Singing Walrus Music Production
The Victor and Anna Kern Foundation
The Victoria Foundation
The Wheelbarrow Fund
The Wolrige Foundation
Times Colonist Christmas
Fund Society
TMX Group
Tweedledum Foundation
United Way Greater Toronto
United Way Southern Vancouver
Island
Valerie Reiter
Vancouver Foundation
Virginia Angus
Walsh Foundation
Warm Hearts Charitable Foundation
Warrington PCI Management
Wells Fargo
West Vancouver Foundation
Westminster Foundation
Wheaton Precious Metals Corp
William D Robertson

A Brighter Future

Starts with You

Thank you for your generosity and encouragement in 2023/24.

We can only do this with your support

Together, we are putting hope on the table for thousands of hungry kids across BC.

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