Connah Hedly from the Resene Cambridge Colourshop (centre) hands over some of the 229 cans of food collected at the store to the Cambridge Salvation Army’s van driver and food bank coordinator Peter Reid (left) and Billie Brown (right).
The Cambridge Salvation Army collected over a thousand cans in this year’s Resene Hunger for Colour campaign.
Now in its fifth year, the initiative encourages Kiwis to swap cans of food for paint test pots at Resene ColourShops around the country during the month of February.
But in many cases this year, people donated cans without a paint pot in return (valued at $4), instead just “doing their bit” for the community.
“We’re really impressed by how many Cambridge people have supported us this year,” said Kerry Mason, manager of the Resene Cambridge Colourshop. “We’re very proud of being part of this campaign, working with people in Cambridge to make a difference for struggling people here, and adding colour to customer’s lives.”
The Cambridge store collected 229 cans of food for the Salvation Army Cambridge Corps. 851 cans were also collected by the Cambridge “Sallies” from Resene paint stores around the district, including Morrinsville (144), Matamata (396) and Te Awamutu (311).
The food items will be distributed back into these areas to support struggling families.
“We’re now fully stocked up for people in need, and it’s so timely following on from Christmas,” said Shaun Baker, captain of the Salvation Army Cambridge Corps. “A huge thank you to Resene and the local community.”
The donations mean the Salvation Army food bank in Cambridge is now stocked for the next few months, likely lasting until Christmas donations start rolling in again.
Last year’s drive saw Cambridge collect more cans than any other town in the area, with a total of 434 cans of food. Te Awamutu was about 50 cans behind, followed by Matamata with 234 cans and Morrinsville with 84.
In total, 38,458 cans across the country were handed in for this year’s Resene Hunger for Colour Campaign. In its five years running, the campaign has collected almost 190,000 cans of food to support struggling New Zealand families.
