Fighting hunger

Debbie Berdi says going to see Disney's latest film in support of Shelter House has become an annual family tradition.

Berdi, her two children and her husband attended the seventh annual Investors Group  Financial Services Inc. Food for Thought food drive at Silver City on Saturday. It's something she and her husband Robert have done each year since first took their daughter to see The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, she said.

"The kids look forward to it every single year," Berdi said. "It’s a big thing for us and it supports the shelter house. I just got back into town this morning and the first thing my children told me was not to forget our non-perishable food item."

Ten-year-old Isabel Berdi and her eight-year-old brother Nicholas had their food item ready and were excited to see the latest Disney movie Tangled, Debbie Berdi said.

Her children know that when Christmastime arrives they should get their non-perishable food ready so that they can donate to help a needy family, she said.

More than a hundred employees and clients with the Investors Group attended the event. Employees greeted the movie patrons in Santa Claus hats and took their non-perishable food items as their ticket to the show.

"Every year the Investors Group gets so many donations," she said. "It’s unbelievable how everybody comes out to support the shelter house and the community the way they do."

Herp Lamba, regional director of Investors Group, said they usually donate about a tonne of food each year to Shelter House. The event started as a way for the company to get to know its clients and as a way to say thank you to the community, he said.

"The food is going to the shelter house at an important year obviously," Lamba said. "This is the Christmas spirit. It’s the time of year where people are thinking about giving. Families have a great time and we also help support the community in a big way. I think that’s what gets people out every year."

With the demand for food increasing every year, it’s important to have an event that help so many families in need, he said.