The shelves were nearly empty. The need was growing. Then came a delivery carrying a decade of compassion. Inside were 1,319 jars of peanut butter, collected in memory of a Victoria man whose family says giving back was at the heart of who he was. On Monday, Merry Maids of Victoria delivered the donation to the Mustard Seed food bank through its annual Project Peanut Butter campaign, an initiative started by Matt Tanner in 2014. The timing could not have been more important. The Mustard Seed is facing increasing demand as more people across Greater Victoria turn to food banks for help making ends meet. Last year, the Mustard Seed Church’s food bank saw a 25 per cent jump in demand over its 2024 numbers. Claudia Rezende, the organization’s director of development, says that need has continued to rise. “2026 seems to be another record breaking year,” said Rezende. “Since the Covid-19 pandemic we have seen a 90 per cent rise in demand.” The Mustard Seed says one in 10 people living in Greater Victoria now rely on the food bank each month, including seniors, single adults and families. The organization is also seeing more double-income families needing support as the cost of groceries continues to put pressure on household budgets. Rezende says summer is often one of the most challenging times of the year because children are home from school and families have more meals to provide. “Those kids are hungry and families need to feed their kids when they are not at school benefitting from school programs,” At the same time, summer is when food donations often decline. On Monday, the peanut butter shelves at the Mustard Seed were looking sparse until the large donation arrived. “We just delivered a whole bunch of Peanut Butter to the Mustard Seed which is fabulous,” said Scott Tanner, owner of Merry Maids of Victoria. The 1,319 jars were collected through Project Peanut Butter, a campaign that has been running since 2014 and has been responsible for tens of thousands of peanut butter donations over the years. The initiative was started by Matt Tanner, who co-owned Merry Maids of Victoria with his father. His family says generosity was a defining part of his life. “A big part of Matt was giving back,” said Dylan Tanner, Matt’s brother. “Matt was very kind,” said his father, becoming emotional while remembering his son. Matt was known by his family as a helper who looked for ways to support others. In 2021, following a catastrophic stroke, he died, leaving behind a young son and his then-pregnant partner. For the Tanner family, continuing Project Peanut Butter is a way to make sure Matt’s kindness continues to reach people in the community. “The goal is to just do this every year and to keep building it and to keep that legacy going for Matt,” said his brother. For the past 12 years, the campaign has helped fill an important gap during the summer months, providing families with a high-protein food source when donations are often lower. “We cannot do this alone so this comes at a great time,” said Rezende. For Dylan Tanner, seeing the project continue is a reminder that his brother’s impact is still being felt. “It’s powerful and it feels good,” said Matt’s brother Dylan. The annual donation has become about more than jars of peanut butter. It is a way for the Tanner family to continue the generosity Matt was known for. “He would be very pleased I think that this project is still going strong,” said Matt’s father.
