Regina library food box program expanding with need

Looking to help with a growing problem, more Regina Public Library branches have been added to distribution for Regina Education and Action on Community Hunger’s (REACH) Good Food Boxes.

“Libraries do lots of non-traditional things now so we’re trying to serve the community and meet community needs,” explained Kimberley Hintz, executive director for branches with Regina Public Library.

The boxes are filled with fresh fruits and vegetables and can be ordered online for pickup at one of REACH’s depots. There are 20 in the city, including the five library locations – Glen Elm, George Bothwell, Sherwood Village, Sunrise, and Regent.

Go Behind the Headlines to find out more:

The partnership started when REACH came to the library with the idea. Hintz said at the same time, some of the library staff came to the administration recommending putting together a community fridge because they saw a need.

Over the last year, the project has been trialed at three branches, now they’re going bigger by adding two more.

“Library branches are in lots of great areas in the city, and help cover a lot of parts of the city where we didn’t have depots previously,” explained Matt Leisle, executive director at REACH.

Volunteers show up at 7 a.m. to pack the boxes for the Good Food Box program. Dec. 4, 2024 (Lisa Schick/980 CJME)

He said having the branches involved has opened up more customers they couldn’t get to otherwise.

“The same kinds of customers who might be using (REACH’s) services are coming into the library, so it was a really great way for them to match them up,” Hintz added.

Being able to connect with more customers is good for REACH as Leisle said the need for this kind of program has grown.

“We’re seeing food prices increase across the city, there’s more people using more emergency sources of food and so The Good Food Box is a great way for people to get to that affordable food without having to rely on those emergency sources like the food bank,” he explained.

Leisle said the number of food boxes the program puts together has grown 70 per cent.

The boxes range from small, medium and large, and can cost anywhere from $15 to $25 depending on the size. Leisle said extra produce or pantry staples can be added on as well.

The boxes can be ordered online and then shipped to one of the 20 depots in Regina for pick-up.

Volunteers packed fresh fruits and veggies into boxes for hundreds of people throughout the city every month. (Abby Zieverink/980 CJME)