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Peel Mutual Insurance donates $4,500 to Bradford Helping Hand Foodbank

'It was a no brainer for me where the money should go'

On Wednesday morning, Peel Mutual Insurance (PMI) Company paid a visit to the Bradford Helping Hand Food Bank to present a cheque to Anne Silvey and food bank volunteers in the amount of $4,500 to help stock their shelves. 

When COVID struck, the board wanted to do something to help out those in need during these unprecendented times. 

PMIl and the Ontario Mutual Insurance Association  (OMIA) decided to donate funds to charities throughout Ontario. The money was divided equally among all nine board members, who then donated to their charity of choice.

Coun. Ron Orr is one of nine board members with the insurance company and has been for the past 34 years.  It was easy for him to decide which organization he wanted to donate the money to: The Bradford Helping Hand Foodbank. 

"It was a no-brainer for me where the money should go," stated Orr. 

"On behalf of Peel Mutual and OMIA, we understand and appreacite how difficult things are with COVID, and how people are really struggling to make ends meet," said PMI Assistant Vice President of Business Development, John Spinelli. "I am sure you guys will stretch it as far as it can go."

Bradford Food Bank Treasurer Alvin Belanger noted many of the items the food bank purchases comes from Peter's No Frills in Bradford. 

"It's one of our major supporters and where we buy a lot of our product," he said.

Belanger noted while food bank donations are up, so are expenses and the food bank is doing its best to keep up with demand.

“Right now, we’ve doubled the expenses of last year,” Belanger said.

President of the food bank, Anne Silvey noted that with COVID, donations to the food bank are now preferred in monetary format, through electronic money transfers or by cheque. 

Since starting to accept electronic money transfers in April, the food bank has received 167 to date, but cheque is still the most popular form of donating. "With us receiving money, we can go and purcahse exactly what we need," said Silvey.

"We'd rather not have goods because we have to put the goods in quarantine before we can even sort them and then distribute them," she said,  adding that with monetary donations greater than $20, donors are also eligible for a tax receipt at the end of the year.

"Our foodbank certainly relies on organizations like yourself (Peel Mutual), that really help out when we need it the most," said Deputy Mayor James Leduc. "We want to thank you for that large donation, that's going to go very far supporting a lot of families in our community."

Some of the other organizations receiving funds from the board include Big Brothers and Big Sisters in Barrie, a Brampton food bank, and a hospital to purchase personal protective equipment. 

“Peel Mutual is an insurer in the Peel Region. It’s been around since 1876,” said Spinelli. “We’re happy to donate.”

The company was established to provide insurance for farmers, who were unable to otherwise access insurance, and now offers a complete line of residential, automobile, farm and commercial insurance products. It continues to be “built on trust, community and strong relationships.” 

The Helping Hand Food Bank is located at 123 Moore St. in Bradford, and is open to the public three days a week, serving the community of Bradford West Gwillimbury. For more information, visit the website, www.bradfordfoodbank.ca . A registered charity, the food bank issues tax receipts for donations over $20.

-with files from Miriam King



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