On a bright but cold December morning, Steve Jelly, Chairman of the Blackpool Group, Colin Goodwin, President of the Blackpool Masonic Hall Club, Bob Marsden, Fylde Regional Charity Steward, Neil Higgins, Blackpool Group Charity Steward and Chris Walpole arrived at the Blackpool Masonic Hall on Adelaide Street, Blackpool to help transport the many items of food that had been so generously donated by the Freemasons of Blackpool to the Blackpool Food Bank. Whilst all of the donations are appreciated, special thanks must go to the Peace and Unity Lodge No 3966 for their donation of £400 worth of goods.
Blackpool Food Bank operates as a hub, taking donations of food and creating individual bags containing enough ingredients for a nutritious meal that are then passed out to its 120 front-line partner organisations around the area for onward distribution to those in need, all of which is carried out by 150 volunteers who provide 17,000 hours of service per year free of charge.
One of the food bank’s main aims is to reduce food waste and it works in conjunction with supermarkets, wholesalers and other food banks around the north of England, exchanging commodities between themselves in order to achieve that aim. Their CEO, Victoria Blakeman, said: “Our aim is to get that surplus food into people and not into a hole in the ground or landfill because that’s where it would normally go.”
Given the recent increases in prices of everything from food to energy, more and more families are ‘feeling the pinchand there is an increasing demand on this important service. Throughout 2024, that demand equated to around 400 tons of food and the provision of somewhere in the region of 3,500 emergency food parcels. It’s a vital service for the community at large, especially at this time of year, when for many families their financial struggles are worsened as they try to juggle feeding their children and being able to buy them a present.
Blackpool Freemasons have always supported the food bank at Christmas and this year has been no exception. In addition to the many items delivered to the food bank, cash donations to the sum of £3,130 were also given, a large part of which was due to the generous contribution that came from the West Lancashire Freemasons’ Charity who also support all the food bank initiatives for every group in the Province.
The Blackpool Food Bank has, over the years, developed an impressive bargaining power with national supermarkets and food wholesalers and is able to turn every £1 donated into £4 worth of goods. Therefore, in addition to the many items donated, the Blackpool Group are also able to provide them with £12,000 worth of additional food for the needy. A great example of the generosity of the Blackpool Group members and the wider Provincial charity working together to make a difference in their local community.