A voicemail left by a woman has become the centerpiece of a new awareness campaign by Food Banks of Quebec, aiming to highlight the real-life impact of food insecurity across the province. In the emotional message, the woman identified as “Sonia” explained how she relied entirely on a food bank for the entire month of February. She also says because of the help, she has not gone to bed hungry. Unlike many awareness campaigns that feature actors, Sonia’s message is a real voicemail left on an answering machine. “Sonia’s message just really embodied the impact that this can have on someone’s life,” said Véronique Beaulieu-Fowler, director of philanthropy for Food Banks of Quebec. Beaulieu-Fowler said the message humanizes the growing problem. She says 556,000 Quebecers now visit a food bank each month. “We’ve seen a huge shift since the pandemic, and who uses the services and how frequently they use the services, and that’s a huge strain on the system in place,” she said. The situation is similar at the West Island Mission, where executive director Suzanne Scarrow says demand is growing. “Even just in the last year, we’ve gone from 250 households to over 450 households on the West Island,” said Scarrow. Scarrow says she sees a broader range of people using the services. “We have a lot of seniors who have been frauded, we have a lot of people that have lost their job and were living on credit, hoping that situations would change,” said Scarrow. While Sonia’s identity remains private, Food Banks of Quebec says she no longer relies on their services. Still, her message, a quiet thank you in a moment of need, speaks for thousands of Quebecers who continue to struggle in silence. “This message that we receive, this is really to talk about the reality of what’s happening on the ground, and how food help is way more than food,” said Beaulieu-Fowler. The campaign runs until Oct. 12.
