We have all experienced many changes in our lives in the past few weeks. The unfortunate reality is that these unpredictable changes are much harder on vulnerable members of our communities. At Foodland and within our family of brands, we are doing everything we can to help our local communities.
More than just keeping our stores open to feed Canadians, our store teams have a pulse on the direct needs of their local community. And as always, they’re stepping up. They are donating food and supplies to local food banks. They are making home deliveries to those in isolation and to vulnerable members of our communities. With everything our stores are going through, they haven’t forgotten about their local communities, because that’s just who they are.
And that’s why today we are announcing our Community Action Fund, empowering our more than 1,500 grocery and pharmacy stores coast-to-coast to create localized solutions to help address their communities’ most urgent needs. Inspired by our stores and designed for them. Our stores know their communities best and this program will result in millions of dollars being immediately infused into local communities, in ways that are immediately meaningful.
We’re already seeing it happening. This past Thursday, our Stonebridge store in Saskatoon donated 2,000 paper bags to the Saskatoon Friendship Inn. With reduced hours and a transition to “take out only”, this community center has been working tirelessly to feed those at risk in Saskatoon. The Stoneridge Sobeys donation helped ensure the community centre could shift their operations from free meal service to take-out meals quickly. This donation helped provide safe meals to thousands of neighbours. A small example, but one that is having a big impact for those most in need in Saskatoon.
We are also working with food banks in urban areas to help alleviate the strain on their services by providing products, cash donations and gift cards. Daily, we are hearing from community support organizations about the increasing needs they are facing as more and more people reach out and ask for help. This investment will enable them to do even more to help their neighbours in need.
As we start putting our Community Action Fund into action, we also have to remember our teammates are continuing to provide essential services in-store. We’re empowering the most important leaders in our company – our store managers and franchisee partners – and know by putting this investment in their hands, we can truly make a difference where and when you need us most. This is the time for all of us to come together.
Sincerely,
Michael Medline
President & CEO
