Brother and sister Lucas and Frances Border took a bike and an old baby stroller around their Gonzales neighbourhood recently, collecting non-perishable food items and cash donations for St. Vincent de Paul.
“The community around us are extremely generous and for the kids, it’s a very tangible way to give back,” said their mom, Catherine Border. “Just over 300 pounds of food was collected and then $450 in donations.”
Lucas, 13, rode a bike with a carrier, while Frances, 12, pushed the stroller on collection day Dec. 12 and the proceeds were dropped off at St. Vincent de Paul’s Yates Street location Dec. 21 to be weighed and counted.
“We have no concept of how it would be to not have food in the house,” Catherine said. “When you really look at a family’s income and where it goes, if we can ease that burden and help people put money toward other expenses, since food costs are soaring, we want to help with that.”
Every year around Christmas the family tries to do something to give back to the community, Lucas said.
“It’s important to give back now because COVID has shut down a lot of things and it’s cold, so someone might need a warm soup, and it’s nice to make sure that everybody has food on their table around Christmastime,” he said.
For Frances, giving back “feels really good,” she said, adding it is encouraging to see how many generous people there are in their neighbourhood.
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