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Their first steps should be with full bellies: help Harvest Manitoba feed Manitoba’s youngest

Did you know that almost half of the Manitobans that Harvest Manitoba feeds every month are children? The reality is that one in every three babies born in our province are born into poverty, but Harvest is ensuring that being born into poverty doesn’t mean that necessities of life are in short supply. Through our First Steps program, Harvest provides these necessities to mothers with infants during the most important time in their development; baby formula, baby cereal, and diapers. These are costly items that are vital to the clients we serve – and their babies.

Amy Prince, 29, is a mother of young children, the youngest being two months old, and has been a recipient of essential baby items “formula and diapers mostly”, and a client of Harvest Manitoba through the Trinity Lutheran Church food bank for 11 years. “It’s important to help people that need the help, like low-income people like me,” says Amy. There are seven people in her household, and her monthly grocery budget is around $600. By accessing a Harvest food bank, her grocery budget is supplemented by $100 to $200 every month. The cost per week to purchase baby formula for an infant is approximately $50 a week/ $200 per month. With the help she receives from Harvest to cover essential items, Amy says she’s able to spend money on “other things like toys and clothes,” that are just as essential to the happiness and well-being of her children.

“It’s important to help people that need the help, like low-income people like me”

In 2015 Syrian refugee Huda, and her family left war-torn Syria to Lebanon, emigrated to Canada, and settled in Winnipeg. Huda’s youngest child is an infant of three weeks old. She has been gratefully accessing the Harvest food bank at Acorn Family Place since her arrival in “much too cold” Winnipeg.

Since the start of the pandemic, the number of families with children turning to Harvest for help has increased by 50 per cent. The First Steps program began in 2008 and has supported thousands of Manitoba families – we’d like to continue this support. For mothers who are unable to breastfeed, the cost of purchasing baby formula can be a tremendous burden.

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The First Steps program is a “donor-funded” initiative that can only continue with the generosity of Manitobans like you. Your gift will help mothers like Amy and Huda to provide the basic necessities to their children – to ensure their growth, health, and development today and in the future.

Please join Harvest Manitoba in feeding hungry babies with a donation towards our First Steps program. Click “Donate Now” at harvestmanitoba.ca or call 204-982-3663 to make your contribution.