There’s no question a local Facebook group’s heart is in the right place, especially at this time of the year.
Members of Meanwhile In Sooke donated more than $20,000 to the Sooke Food Bank at a time when many in the community are struggling to make ends meet.
The total includes about $3,000 raised off-line in addition to those made through the group’s Facebook page, said Benjamin Kendrick, who launched Meanwhile In Sooke in 2015.
“I’m amazed by the generosity of people in this community,” he said.”Especially for a Facebook group that only does this once a year.”
Meanwhile In Sooke, which has 20,000 members, has hit its goal of $10,000 a year since the fundraiser was launched three years ago.
“We raised $13,000 last year, which was awesome,” Kendrick said. “But this year’s total literally blows me away. I want to thank the community for their incredible support.”
Donations are being accepted until Dec. 20 at meanwhileinsookeooke@ Facebook.
“Meanwhile In Sooke is like a bulletin board or public forum for art, photos and comments for the Sooke area,” Kendrick said. “Some of the funny photos we post get a lot of reaction.”
Mike Thomas, co-chair of the Sooke Christmas Bureau, said the donation from Meanwhile In Sooke is greatly appreciated, especially considering the need this year.
“It’s tremendous, tremendous support,” said Thomas, who also volunteers with the Sooke Food Bank.
“It will really help greatly because we have more families needing help this year. Our total’s up to 378 hampers, but the generosity never stops in Sooke. Everyone pulls together.”
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