People who rely on Bear Clan food bank relieved as non-profit steps in to fill gap after closure

People in Winnipeg's North End who relied on the Bear Clan Patrol food bank are relieved another organization has stepped in to fill a gap after the community patrol group abruptly cut the service last week.

Robert Davies, who has been using the Bear Clan food bank on Selkirk Avenue for years, said the closurewas upsettingto those who showed up last week and saw the Selkirk Avenue service was shuttered.

"I had some neighbours that were sharing with me because we thought it was not coming back," Davies said Tuesday outside the food bank, which is now being runby the non-profitCommunity Helpers Unite.

"This here is going to have us all good," he said. "There's going to be a lot of people going, 'Oh yeah!'"

Community Helpers Unite came forwardto help feed the roughly 200 peoplepreviously served each day by Bear Clan while the patrol works to take over again.

"It's a beautiful relationship," said Community Helpers Unite CEO Brandy Bobier."We'll support them anyway we can."

Bear Clan announced last Thursday it had to close "due to circumstances beyond [its] control." It hasn't publicly elaborated on that, but said it was a temporary measure that could last up to eight weeks while itsecuresfunding for reopening.

Bobier has been partnering with Bear Clan for about five years, and previously helped out by catering forpatrol groups.

Community Helpers Unite operates three kitchens that make between 25,000 and 28,000 meals monthly, said Bobier. Some of that goes to 13 different community walk groups, and somegoes to folks in community.

The organizationalso has a hamper program run out of a warehouse on Jarvis Avenue for social service outreach workers "to help mitigate [Child and Family Services] apprehensions," said Bobier.

When she got a call late last weekfrom a Bear Clan driver, Bobier guessed that asusual, it was about items that couldn't be handed out at the food bank andwere up for grabs.

"Instead he was phoning me to tell me, 'Brandy, they're shutting the doors today and they're not reopening them,' and it was wild," Bobier toldInformation Radiohost Marcy Markusa in a Tuesday morning interview.

Bobier got on the phone and within about three hours had managed to arrange for regular food bank pickups to continue.

In the days immediately after the closure,Bobier and others made arrangementsto run the program out of the Andrews Street Family Centre.

Now, it'sback in the Bear Clan "den" on Selkirk Avenue. The patrol group continues to pay rent on the Selkirk space, and Community Helpers Unite is paying wages for Bear Clan's full- and part-time delivery drivers "to keep the food pickups going seven days a week," said Bobier.

It's also paying for the food distribution co-ordinator to come back to help facilitate volunteers who will help staff the food bank for now.

The goal is to "ensure the least amount of disruption in that food landscape,"Bobier said.

The need for a food bank is almost as high as it was during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic,she said, and she hopes to help bolster relationships between other North End food organizations to streamline services in the coming weeks.

Wendy Craitwas back in line at the Bear Clan food bank Tuesday. She has been using it every day since it's been open.

"I count on these guys 100 per cent," she said.

The closure last week was "sad and depressing," said Crait, but she's glad it's back up and running.

"I feel OK about this.I'm happy they're reopening, and it's exciting."

WATCH | North End food bank reopening a relief, community members say:

Food bank reopens after brief closure to the relief of many in North End

1 year ago

Duration 1:18

People who rely on the food bank operated by the Winnipeg Bear Clan patrol say they're glad it's back up and running after a temporary closure, all thanks to another community group stepping up.