The Compass Food Bank and Outreach Centre is asking people to walk the walk while they’re out in the parks, or stuck indoors, this September to raise money for food donations.   

The Compass’s annual fundraising walk is a major event that raised close to $35,000 last year. The economic fallout from the pandemic means the need is greater this year, and will only increase for the foreseeable future. 

"There is an increased need with the pandemic, we have had to adjust our operations to accommodate," Says Mike Giguere, The Chair of the Compass board “We know we are going to see more new clients as the pandemic continues and the economic implications of the needed closures play out.”

The Walk, scheduled for the week of September 13 to 19, is virtual this year. Participants register online at www.thecompass.ca. Walkers provide their shirt size and address and The Compass sends out a walk kit, complete with t-shirt, mask, snack, and a race day bib. Participants sign up for a 1k, 5k, or 10k walk. Fundraising can be done online, through social media, using Canada Helps, or, walkers can download a form and collect sponsors the traditional way. 

The big walk day is Saturday, September 19. But giving people a full week to get their walking done will allow for rain days and scheduling conflicts which let more people join in the fun, Onuoha says. 

“Families are really taking to the outdoors to enjoy the extra time they have together. What better way to bring families together than walking together for a good cause” says Onuoha “And people can always walk indoors as well with a virtual walk”. Walkers can spread the message on social media with #walkthewalk2020.

The Compass is an agency of the Mississauga Food Bank (MFB). Roughly half the food distributed at The Compass is provided by the MFB, with the remaining coming from food donations and financial donations from 18 supporting churches, individual donors and local businesses. 

The Compass distributed more than 480,000 lbs. of food to some 2,000 people last year through 16,000 visits. The charity has a donation ranking of 97 per cent as calculated based on Canada Revenue Agency guidelines.