Service group call on community to help cover costs

Katanning locals are being asked to empty their pantry and shake up their sheds by the Katanning Community Resource Centre as it runs two simultaneous donation drives aimed at giving their much needed community projects and services a boost of resources.

The CRC Community Harvest program is partnered with Food Bank and all food obtained through Food Bank attracts a handling fee.

To help keep costs down CRC manager Julie Bucknell is asking residents to donate unwanted food and household items to the program.

“Food waste is such a problem and people don’t realise just how much food they throw away; if you’re not going to use it then give it to us,” Ms Bucknell said.

“We have found that food left in the pantry for more than three months is unlikely to be used.

“We’ve got overheads, we have a $1500 electricity bill, so we try to cover our costs and the best way to cover our costs is if people donate things.

“It helps cover our costs and there a more goods to go out into the community.”

Community Harvest needs more than just food however to provide for the community’s disadvantaged.

“There’s always a call for toiletries and personal health products because they are particularly hard to get a hold of,” Ms Bucknell said.

“Baby products, nappies, light globes, you name it we’ll take it.”

A plan to expand the Community Harvest service to include deliveries to the Broomehill and Tambellup CRCs means the need for more donations is as pressing as ever.

In addition, the CRC run the community garden to ensure fresh vegetables are available at the Community Harvest.

To keep the community garden running Ms Bucknell said they had work for the dole teams who make and sell novelty planters out of old tyres.

“The proceeds then go back into the community garden to pay for seedlings and things like that,” she said.

“Tyrepower is fantastic donating tyres and we’ve been to panel beaters and other businesses scrounging paint for the planters, but there is always a call for more paint and any other hardware items.

“We are building a chook yard, so anything to help with that or garden implements they no longer use, we’d love to have them.