Estefania came to Vancouver with her family from Ecuador.
During her family’s first trip to the grocery store, they were surprised by how much more expensive everything was here. “We said, ‘okay let’s buy something to make dinner’, and my mom literally cried… Food was so expensive, and she struggled to make enough food for all of us.”
At first, Estefania’s family simply didn’t know about all the services available to help them in their time of need. Thankfully, one day, that all changed: “My brother, he wanted to be a normal kid and he didn’t have food, so he refused to go to school. That’s when the teacher said, ‘Your family can get help through the Food Bank.” That one suggestion made a life-changing difference to Estefania and her family.
Suddenly, they had a place to go. A place to get the food they needed and meet people going through the same things as they were. To share recipes and food prep ideas. To create hope and happy memories together.
“The first friend my mom made here in Canada was at the Food Bank, and they are still friends today… When you meet friends and join a community – it just makes it easier. It’s an easier transition.”
