Church of Jesus Christ aids fight against hunger through $1.45M donation to Toronto food bank

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SALT LAKE CITY — The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has donated $1.45 million to a Toronto food bank to help people facing food insecurity.

The donation, amounting to $2 million in Canadian currency, was given to Toronto's Daily Bread Food Bank, Canada's largest food bank. The donation was announced by CEO Neil Hetherington on Monday.

The food bank thanked the church for its "transformational" gift in an event Monday and said the donation will ensure people in Toronto can access nutritious and culturally appropriate food.

"$2 million — that means some 2 million meals out to the community. That means we can purchase two new trucks that will allow us to make sure that every Torontonian can have access to decent, wonderful food," Hetherington said.

Food bank visits have climbed to "alarming heights," resulting in approximately 1 in 10 people living in Toronto facing food insecurity and having to rely on food banks, a release from the church said.

The Daily Bread Food Bank sees about 350,000 client visits per month, compared to only 65,000 visits pre-pandemic. The organization can serve around 1,000 families in just a few hours.

The food bank's annual spending has increased from $1.08 million to over $15.9 million to keep up with the increased demand.

"It's going to be a game changer; it's going to be a life changer," parliament member James Maloney said at the event Monday. "On behalf of everybody here and everybody who unfortunately needs the services of the Daily Bread Food Bank, thank you, thank you, thank you."

Elder Davis LaFrance, an area seventy for the church, said it is important to follow Jesus Christ's example to help others in need.

"This donation to the Daily Bread Food Bank is part of our greater efforts to give and help in the areas in which we live. Our motivation is out of service to others and to help those in need and really follow our Christian convictions to do so. We really are grateful for the wonderful work that's done here at Daily Bread," he said.

During Monday's event, volunteers sorted nearly 1,000 pounds of food on site and made food deliveries with Daily Bread Food Bank trucks.

This donation is the largest financial gift the Church of Jesus Christ has ever made in Canada.

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Cassidy Wixom

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Cassidy Wixom covers Utah County communities and is the evening breaking news reporter for KSL.com.