The Bradford Lions were out at Lions Park Saturday collecting food and toiletry items for the Helping Hand Food Bank.
With Thanksgiving this weekend, and local schools unable to host food drives due to Covid-19 restrictions, the Lions Club stepped up to fill in the gap.
Members of the club stood in the parking lot outside the Lions Club building to collect food and monetary donations from the community.
"There is a real shortage at the food bank so we thought we'd step up and help, and we'll probably do another one in November to try to stock up for Christmas," said Bradford Lions Club President Jim Slykhuis. "This is our way of giving back to the community."
The Lions have also organized a donation with the local dental offices in town who have provided toothbrushes and toothpaste to the food bank.
"A lot of people forget, it's not just food that people need," he said.
The Lions have also hosted bottle and e-waste drives in support of the food bank this year, but Slykhuis says the pandemic has made it difficult for the members to be out fundraising and helping others.
"It's been tough on us as a service organization and couldn't really do any service," he said.
When the pandemic first hit, the Lions stepped up to do coffee runs twice a day with the local McDonald's to the staff at Bradford Valley, and stocked the nurses' wellness cart at Southlake Hospital.
The club currently has 30 members and is always looking for more.
Anyone interested in joining can contact the club via their Facebook page or by phone at 905-775-9170.
