Donations 2013 Year To Date:   $ 180,000

School Supplies

Every May, volunteers ask schools to allow us to collect discarded school supplies. Our public school students usually buy brand new every September, often discarding pens, rulers, unfinished notebooks, paper, school bags, crayons, felts, paint sets and brushes etc.

School districts that need to discard old construction paper or newsprint, will find CFFC-BC a grateful recipient as this "new" paper is thankfully received in developing countries. School supplies are sorted and organized for packing. Large boxes are packed with an assortment of school supplies.

A CFFC-BC volunteer and her husband "spent 6 weeks in India with a Carmelite Order. They stayed at a Home for boys ages 13,14, and 15. These boys come from very poor families and stay at the Home for 3 years. They go to school and come back to the Home for free boarding. They were so grateful to receive the school supplies and the T-shirts." (Excerpt from email from A Carino).

Warehouse and Shipping

Canadian Food for Children averages shipments of just under two containers each month. Supplies from the other departments are stacked on pallets and stored in the warehouse until a container is ordered. When the container arrives, a crew of volunteers loads the container. All the contents are carefully recorded for weight and number of pallets and filed with the port authorities for shipment.

Garage Sales and Thrift Shop

Come join us the first Saturday of the month from April through September, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.  for big and little "treasures". Sale will be at the Thrift Shop at 3218 - 224th Street Langley. The thrift shop is sometimes open Tuesday or Thursday mornings. Watch for a sign on the road!

Items that have been donated to CFFC assist in fund raising. Thousands of items are displayed in the shop such as:

• toys
  
• ornaments
  
• dishes
  
• books etc.
  

Volunteering

Food Department

Purchased Food

We buy peas, oatmeal, lentils, soy beans etc. from Saskatchewan and Alberta at a reduced rate. Another volunteer contact secures food at greatly reduced costs from overstocked warehouses or damaged shipping containers or train derailments.

Reclaimed Food

We also pick up on a weekly basis, from a large food distributor, pierced or broken bags of flour, sugar, salt, etc. which are repackaged in lined wine boxes for shipment.

Plastic Pails from Stores with Bulk Food Departments

These are collected by volunteers and the pails scraped for left over peanut butter, jam etc. Then smaller plastic jars or containers are filled with the peanut butter or jam etc. and shipped. Finally, the pails are washed and sent in shipping containers to be used as water pails or buckets to distribute the 100 pound sacks of food in that shipment.

Medical Supplies

Medical Linens: Several volunteers pick up hospital linens not deemed to be sufficiently high quality for our hospitals from two or three hospital laundries weekly. The bins are brought to the Langley depot for sorting, repairing if necessary, folding, and packing. Items include sheets, pillowcases, blankets, surgical pads, gowns, towels etc.

Hotel Linens: Other volunteer contacts pick up bedding, bedspreads, gowns, towels etc. from hotels that are re-decorating or upgrading their linens. Hotels in Whistler, Harrison, Vancouver, Surrey, Richmond, and Chilliwack are regular contributors.

Preparing Linens for Shipment : Two volunteers designed and constructed a "compactor" or baling machine which is designed to compress clothing into 50 lb. bundles for shipping. Each bundle is wrapped in plastic for loading on a pallet.

Clothing: CFFC is no longer accepting donated used clothing. With increased shipping costs and the great need for food, our efforts are now focused on the shipment of much needed food items.

Soaps, Lotions and Shampoos

Volunteers pick up the discarded little bottles of shampoo, lotion, and bars of soap from hotels in Whistler, Harrison, Surrey, Langley, Chilliwack, and Vancouver. Other volunteers sort the bottles, after which they are drained and used to refill larger plastic bottles for shampoo and lotion. Bar soap is packed in pails for shipment.