Paramedics are behind in their drive for food so they are flicking the sirens on to get everyone's attention.
"We are about 20 per cent behind this point last year, it is slower, still a reasonable pace, but we could end up behind the 8-ball. All things considered, it is still going well, but there is just so much need this year," said B.C. Ambulance paramedic Rob Pritchard, one of the main organizers of their annual Prince George food drive.
Their goal this year is to raise 200 food hampers for St. Vincent de Paul. They raised about 60 hampers during their first weekend of collecting, and with growing public knowledge they hope their second (and final) weekend will be significantly better.
The first weekend was spent in front of the Parkwood Save-On-Foods, with donated food and toiletry items going into an onsite ambulance.
This weekend they will set up in front of College Heights Save-On-Foods.
"The word of mouth is out there more, and we are more than prepared to deal with a flood of food, so let's bring it on," said Pritchard.
In his conversations with St. Vincent de Paul, it became clear to Pritchard that paramedics had to really dig in to help this year more than ever before.
"There has been a 30 per cent increase in the need for hampers through St. Vincent de Paul, a lot of new requests, so that is indicative that we still haven't recovered in this economy."
The ambulance will be open and ready for donations at the main doors to the College Heights grocery store on Friday (3 to 7 p.m.) and Saturday (10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.).
