One of our wonderful volunteers, Catherine Cox, who is a part of our Tuesday shift, surprised us recently with a huge haul of food donated by her colleagues at the City of Ottawa’s ATIP & Elections office. When asked how she motivated her colleagues to collect so much for us she told us: “Actually, I didn’t have to motive one bit! All I have to do is tell my colleagues about some of the people that come in to get food; the looks on their faces; the need. People in this city are actually hungry. I tell them about how a box of Kleenex is a luxury item. I have never actually asked them for anything — they just care.” The Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) & Elections office is located off site from City Hall, and is a legislated unit dealing with confidential privacy issues. Staff decided that their goal this Christmas was to fill Catherine’s SUV with food for the PFC.
Catherine is very proud of her colleagues explaining “Over the past year, my SUV has been filled to the brim with food, clothes, and children’s books. If I happen to mention we ran out of sugar last night at the food bank, the next day my office floor is covered with bags of sugar. This is an office that just keeps on giving no matter what the season.” Thanks to Catherine for being one of our great volunteers and inspiring others!