The ‘Fill Our Fleet’ campaign from the Alberta Motor Association helped provide a boost to food banks across the province over the holidays.
The initiative encouraged donations of non-perishables and cash to community food banks. Province-wide, the campaign raised a record $371,451 for Albertans in need.
Locally, a total of $5,576 was raised, to be split evenly between both the Interfaith Food Bank and Lethbridge Food Bank.
READ MORE: ‘Fill Our Fleet’: AMA campaign collecting donations for local food banks
A new way to donate included letting AMA members ‘top up’ their donations. Members who visited a centre could choose to round up or add a small amount to their regular purchase, with 100 per cent of those proceeds supporting their local food bank.
Officials say Albertans used the ‘top up’ option 7,263 times over the course of the fundraising campaign.
Additionally, AMA contributed by matching donations. Initially, the organization committed to matching up to $100,000. However, due to a strong turnout and the increased need for support from food banks, AMA increased its matching to $125,000.
“We launched this campaign knowing food banks were facing record-high demand, but the response from Albertans truly exceeded our expectations,” says Karina Dixon, executive director of the AMA Community Foundation.
“When our million AMA members and the broader community come together, it shows just how powerful collective action can be.”
Officials say recent data shows that more than 210,000 people are visiting food banks in Alberta each month, an increase of 22 per cent from the year before, and a jump of 134 per cent from 2019 figures.
“We’re deeply proud of our members, whose generosity through ‘Fill Our Fleet’ currently supports 22 different food banks across Alberta, helping to strengthen communities of all sizes,” Dixon adds.
The campaign started in 2009 and since then, it has provided over $1.8 million in donations and over 425,000 pounds of food for Albertans in need.
