A much-needed local charity that helps people in need is being shuttered — unless it gets some help itself.
In a Facebook post on Jan. 18, Leah Dyck, who is the founder of Fresh Food Weekly, a food security program that delivers fresh and locally sourced food to low-income families on a bi-weekly basis, announced that she will no longer be able to continue the program.
“I’ve decided that yesterday was our last delivery day, as I can’t keep running the program on my own anymore,” she wrote. “I do have a plan on what my next steps are and that includes figuring out a way to get funded like all the other charities do. That's why they exist: they have funding which allows them to hire staff.
“I’m going to be reaching out to all our program recipients, volunteers, suppliers, donors and other community partners over the next few days to let everyone know," Dyck added.
The Barrie woman, who has been living in Barrie public housing for the last 14 years, launched her community program in mid-2021 with a goal of reducing food insecurity by providing food to those who need it.
She said she has only seen the need for the program grow since the first delivery in June 2021.
In May 2021, Dyck applied for charitable status, which she officially received on July 19, 2022.
Dyck said her goal with the charity was to create a program that was ultimately indispensable, and would be supported by other local charities.
“I am not able to get my own government funding yet. For the Trillium Foundation (grant), for example, you have to submit a minimum of two audits," she said. "One audit costs an average of $9,000. I would have to spend $18,000 just to be able to apply.”
The other option would have been to partner with another charity which would have applied on her behalf, which she noted is not uncommon.
“It’s a very normal and common thing to do … but nobody is doing that for me, so I had to shut down," Dyck said. "That’s how you exist — with funding. You can’t just operate on random donations that hopefully come in.”
Dyck estimates she raised upwards of $100,000 last year, but it was simply a drop in the bucket of what was ultimately needed to be able to fund the program which, in 2023, delivered 1,995 food boxes to local families.
“I really wanted to get people on the program who needed it the most … the poorest of the poor. I wanted to focus on those people and I needed to get lots of volunteers to help me with that," she said.
Despite her obvious disappointment in needing to close the program, Dyck says she’s extremely proud of what she created and the number of people she — and her volunteers — have helped.
She has her sights set on getting the proper funding in place to operate it as a fully functioning charity in the future with staff and an operating facility.
“I am estimating it’s over $250,000 in fresh food that I arranged to be delivered to those people who desperately need it,” Dyck said. “I am shutting it down because I can’t keep running it by myself anymore. I physically am not well because of it. I can’t afford to eat … I eat one meal a day and it’s been like that for over a year and I am drained beyond belief.”
Having to shutter the program she’s worked so hard to create — and which is still much-needed in the city — feels like a punch to the gut for Dyck, who said she finds herself in tears daily thinking about the gap that will be left without Fresh Food Weekly.
“The truth is it’s being shut down because nobody cares (who) should care. (The problem) is getting the people in charge of the money to say ‘yes’. Nobody here is interested,” she said. “I think everybody assumed it was inevitable and no one thought it would get funded ... nobody cares enough.”
Dyck says she has requested a meeting with City of Barrie officials to see if the municipality will help support the program by applying for funding on its behalf, so she’s hopeful something will come from that.
An official from the office of the mayor confirmed Dyck has requested a meeting with Mayor Alex Nuttall, but no date has been set yet for talks.
Dyck also says she is extremely grateful for the support she’s received from volunteers, and admitted she’s not quite ready to give up hope entirely of breathing some air back into Fresh Food Weekly someday.
“Even though it feels like everything's falling apart right now … it could turn into something really wonderful, like changing public policy. That would be incredible,” she said.
“I have already told my volunteers I am committing at least two more years to trying to make this work. I am just not doing the physical work anymore,” Dyck added. “There is no replacement for people. This was feeding them … and I don’t know how many people know that.”
