Christian foodbanks feed flood-hit families
Just three weeks after opening, North Lakes foodbank in Cockermouth was catapulted into action as severe floods hit thousands of homes in the area.
With the foodbank itself 8ft deep in water, all the food previously collected was ruined, but within
24 hours of the floods hitting emergency food was already on the way from Christian charity The Trussell Trust’s UK foodbanks. North Lakes foodbank now has 10 times the amount of food originally collected and has helped hundreds of flood-hit families.
Today (1 December) 100 family foodboxes will be delivered to North Lakes foodbank from Salisbury, Andover and Swindon foodbanks, helping them to keep up their work providing relief as families continue to struggle. Andrew Robinson, North Lakes foodbank manager says: “It’s like the loaves and fishes, we had our small offering and the Lord has blessed it by giving us ten-fold what we had and it keeps coming!”
North Lakes foodbank was one of the first relief agencies on the ground giving out emergency food in the worst hit areas of Cumbria. The day after the floods hit the foodbank team were giving out food and nappies in Northside, the side of Workington that was cut off from the main town after the bridge collapsed.
Andrew says: “We were able to give food and toiletries to a lady who lived in the house next to the bridge that collapsed. Her and her son were rescued from the house taking only the clothes they stood up in. I met her in a library with bags of food and we will be supporting her more in future as she starts to put her life back together.”
Andrew's wife Jane has been manning the phones and helping to run the operation whilst also caring for their four-week-old baby. “Having only just opened as a foodbank this has been a steep learning curve, but a very positive one,” she says. “People really are desperate here and are so grateful for the food. We couldn't have imagined the support we have received from foodbanks and generous people around the country, it’s been amazing!”
Jane adds: “It's been great to be here for people in the immediate crisis, but we are here for the long haul. People will have to start paying bills and moving back into their damaged homes and that's going to be tough so we have a lot more to do. Plus, we now need to find new premises. It's not going to be easy but we are determined to make this work.”
Chris Mould, Trussell Trust Director, says: “The Trussell Trust is delighted that our national network of foodbanks has been able to pull together to provide emergency relief to the people of Cockermouth and Workington at this time of crisis. The emergency food is making a huge difference to families who have lost so much and we are so pleased to have been able to mobilise the help of people all the way from Andover to Liverpool.”
