A NEW initiative is coming soon out of the Meredith Community Centre with the aim of providing food security for people doing it tough.<\/p>\n
Delivered by centre staff with support from Foodbank and Golden Plains Shire, the Meredith Mart is set to be open from next Monday.<\/p>\n
Centre manager Leah Phillips said with cost-of-living pressures there\u2019s been a need to provide support for people in the community.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of people talking about how they\u2019re struggling right now so if we can do anything to help them out, this is an ideal opportunity,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis saves them going to the supermarket in Bannockburn or Ballarat so it\u2019s also saving on petrol as well as if they can get some food staples here.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe items will be things you can make a meal, whether breakfast, lunch and dinner, out of where you\u2019d only have to add meat.”<\/p>\n
Once open, the mart\u2019s operating times will mirror the centre\u2019s from 9am to 3pm Mondays to Thursdays.<\/p>\n
With the Meredith Primary School\u2019s food pantry active since 2020, Ms Phillps said their initiative will run differently.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019ll be in a room at our centre and completely anonymous,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe pantry\u2019s great for one-offs but this way people can grab exactly what they need. We\u2019ll have a lot more than but they\u2019ll be run in conjunction.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re also able to do deliveries which will be from Meredith up to Bannockburn, it depends on what\u2019s feasible.\u201d<\/p>\n
With food to be supplied monthly by Foodbank, Ms Phillips said there\u2019ll also be potential for community involvement.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf someone knows a family that\u2019s doing it tough, they can be nominated for an anonymous front-door delivery,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll have a little fridge and people can donate what they can. It just has to be unopened food that\u2019s not expired.<\/p>\n
\u201cGive what you can, take what you need is how we\u2019re promoting this.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Meredith Mart is being supported with $3000 by Golden Plains Shire for a 12-month period.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A NEW initiative is coming soon out of the Meredith Community Centre with the aim of providing food security for people doing it tough. Delivered by centre staff with support from Foodbank and Golden Plains Shire, the Meredith Mart is set to be open from next Monday. Centre manager Leah Phillips said with cost-of-living pressures […]<\/p>\n