'It kind of made us all melt here': Whitehorse kids help out food bank

A four-year-old from Whitehorse is one of many kids doing their part to help out the local food bank this holiday season.

Zander Paszkiewicz, who just turned four, dropped off 20 boxes of cereal he had asked for as birthday gifts.

"Some I wanted to eat," Paszkiewicz told CBC Yukon's Midday Cafe guest host George Maratos.

Paszkiewicz's mother, Julie Monahan, said the idea came up after the family talked about how they could help give back.

"Instead of asking for gifts from his friends, we asked for cereal," Monahan said.

"When we suggested it, he kind of just jumped at it. So we went with it."

Paszkiewicz  wasn't the only kid in Whitehorse helping out this season – a group of Grade 5 students at Whitehorse Elementary School also recently helped to fill 76 food hampers at the food bank, enough to feed 150 people.

Students at École Émilie Tremblay in Whitehorse also spent weeks baking cookies and selling them, donating $1,000 to the food bank.

Dave Blottner, executive director of the Food Bank Society of Whitehorse, said the donations were a welcome surprise.

"It warmed our hearts. It kind of made us all melt here," he said.

Grade 5 students from Whitehorse Elementary School helped pack 76 food hampers at the Whitehorse food bank. (Submitted by Food Bank Society of the Yukon )

With demand growing at the food bank, every bit helps.

"It really is how you look at it. Twenty boxes doesn't sound like a lot, but that's 20 families that get to have cereal for a week," Blottner said.

Blottner said the number of people using the food bank has doubled since the COVID-19 pandemic.

"We keep saying it's been tough times, but it still looks like rocky times ahead," he said.

Blottner said people can help out the food bank by donating through its website, by bringing in food donations or by volunteering their time.