By Kellah Lavoie

Food bank disappointed by grant

Jan 16, 2011 | 9:29 AM

The Prince Albert Share a Meal/Food Bank is not getting the money they were hoping for.

“It looked promising,” said Ron Bergen, food bank executive director, about the Campbell’s Canada Grant.

The grant, created by Campbell’s Soup Canada, gives out $90,000 across the country. An applicant can be given up to $30,000.

Bergen said they were asking for $21,000 for new stoves and a walk in cooler.

“As a food bank, we are the only one in Saskatchewan that can serve meals,” he said explaining he thought they had a good shot since part of the grant was for kitchen upgrades.

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He said if they weren’t going to get all the money asked for, he was still hoping for something, “I thought thay might say $10,000.”

One of the things Bergen finds most frustrating, is that they were not given any explanation as to why they didn’t receive the grant.

“They just said that it wasn’t accepted at this time,” he said.

He’s not going to let hold back the expansion.

“It’s not the end of the world, we are still going ahead with the expansion,” he said explaining the stoves they have are very old, but still work. The freezers they currently have are in the basement – it makes it difficult, but they will get by.

Bergen already has ideas of where he will turn next.

Casino Regina and Casino Moose Jaw have a grant he plans to apply for. He said the Indian and Metis Friendship Centre received it in the past to fix-up their kitchen, and he hopes to get it along the same lines.

“Rather than pull from the community, if we can get outside money that everyone else gets, we’d like to do that too, ease the burdens (on the local community),” he said.

He said applying for grants is a slow process and you can never be certain you will get one.

Bergen is also hoping the community is willing to help. They already received a couple of big donations for the expansion, but need more.

He said over the Christmas season the people of Prince Albert stepped up. He called December “one of the best we’ve ever had.”

klavoie@panow.com