Volunteers roll up their sleeves for Campbell River Food Bank renos
To witness the power of volunteers, look no further than the Campbell River Food Bank.
Jeff Goodwin and an army of volunteers have transformed the old building on the corner of 14th Avenue and Marwalk Crescent.
Where patrons used to stand in line for food exposed to the elements is now a covered walkway where people can take shelter while waiting their turn on distribution day.
That project, dubbed Phase One, is worth about $50,000 but thanks to community donations it cost the food bank around $1,200.
The walkway was built under the direction of Joey Falsetti. Tragically, Falsetti, who did 75 per cent of the work on Phase
One, died last May. That delayed the start of Phase Two while Goodwin searched for a new lead hand.
He eventually found Mike Warner who brought some of his crew over to lend a hand.
Phase Two got underway last weekend and was expected to be complete by Tuesday afternoon after the Mirror went to press.
“Phase Two involves enclosing a 30’ deep by 24’ wide x 14’ high warehouse complete with framing, sheathing, siding, windows, overhead door, man door and down spouts,” Goodwin said. “The cost for Phase Two is approximately $10,000 to contract out, and we are hoping to complete the entire renovation for under $500 from our food bank budget.”
Goodwin took on the food bank project out of the kindness of his heart after witnessing the condition of the building as he was dropping off Shaw’s food bank donations generated through the Harvest the River campaign two years ago.
It took Goodwin 11 months to get engineer drawings done, secure a development permit, and gather trades contracts.
Goodwin also took it upon himself to approach local businesses for materials and financial donations.
Debbie Willis, manager of the food bank who, along with George Gunville, took over from George and Ann Minosky in November, is amazed by the renovations and said having the front of the building along Marwalk enclosed will allow for a dry storage area.
“It’s amazing what (Goodwin) has been doing,” Willis said. “He’s our resident genie. We can’t survive without volunteers like that – they’re the backbone.
“Apparently there’s lots of plans in the works. We’re thrilled.”
Phase Three will involve closing the outdoor loading area while Phase Four will be renovating the inside of the building, including re-doing the bathrooms. Goodwin said he hopes to complete Phase Three by the end of this year and finish the interior by the beginning of 2014.
Volunteers on Phase Two included: Mike Horner, Horner Construction, Arie and Bill (journeyman carpenters), Trevor Provost of DBC Construction, Ron Sellers, and high school students Travis Goodwin, Rio Massee, Jake McKenzie, Gavin Rauser, Cole Rennie and Colton Thompson.
Corporate donations came from: Awl Tec Heating Air Conditioning and Refrigeration, CBS Doors, General Paint, Glacier Gutters, Seymour Pacific, Sky-Hi Scaffolding, Starbucks, Subway, Windsor Mill Sales, and the Home Depot.
Food bank kitchen
Meanwhile, the Campbell River ReStore has re-invented the food bank kitchen.
The non-profit donated new cupboards, a countertop, and a dishwasher to the food bank to help feed the volunteers on distribution days.
Willis said before Habit for Humanity’s ReStore got involved, the counter was wobbling precariously and the old dishwasher leaked.
Merit Home Furniture donated a new stove and Lee Mac Electric Ltd. did electrical work.
In the past, lunch had to be cooked in shifts as the switch would get tripped if more than one appliance was turned on at the same time.
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