Red Deer & District Community Foundation supports Christmas Bannock Bags Community Initiative

This month, the Red Deer & District Community Foundation was approached by several local Indigenous agencies who shared a collective concern about imminent issues of food insecurity for the community members they serve. The RDDCF Board of Directors was able to respond with $10,000 in emergency funding to support over 200 households within Red Deer to supplement the distribution of annual Christmas Bannock Bags.

The Christmas Bannock Bags provide dried goods to make bannock, as well as other essentials, to over 200 individuals and families. The funding from RDDCF was used to purchase gift cards to be included in the Christmas Bannock Bags, to be used by recipients to purchase a protein, or any other necessities from Central Alberta Co-op, who also contributed by donating additional gift cards.

“This is such a great demonstration of community effort,” said Erin Peden, Executive Director of RDDCF. “Because of our relationship with these agencies, and our previous discussions regarding financial support, we were able to meet this request for emergency funding, knowing the value of the Christmas Bannock Bags.”

“We have incredible agencies here in Red Deer, and they are working tirelessly to provide support and programming for Indigenous families and individuals in our community,” said Peden. “We applaud their efforts to help the Indigenous community during what is a challenging time for so many. The Christmas Bannock Bags are such an important community initiative, and one that our Board of Directors immediately understood as vital.”

The Christmas Bannock Bags will be distributed to over 200 families and individuals in Red Deer in 2022.