Volunteers flock to help out food bank

More than 60 people responded to a call for volunteers from the Marlborough Community Food Bank.

They came forward following an article in The Marlborough Express last week calling for volunteers, after the demand for food parcels increased by 30 per cent from 2007.

Marlborough Community Food Bank manager David Cosgrove said the response had been excellent. It now had enough volunteers to run the food bank "until about 2015," Mr Cosgrove said.

He said Marlborough was small and that made the community rally together because everyone knew each other.

He said people had a lot to gain by volunteering. They could meet new people, do something for the community and keep busy.

While the recession had not appeared to have hit Marlborough as hard as other areas in New Zealand, with economic activity in the Nelson-Marlborough region rising 1.7 per cent in the past three months, economists predicted Marlborough would start feeling the real impact in autumn.

There was an increased need for welfare and budgeting services, but it was not all bad news, said Volunteer Marlborough co-ordinator Judy Doyle. She said that while job cuts were not as extreme as in other centres, people may find themselves with reduced hours or find it harder to find employment.

She said people who found themselves unable to find employment or with reduced hours could look at volunteering as a way to keep up their skills, and use it as a "stepping stone" to employment.

She said more volunteers could mean more services offered within the community, as well as maintaining current services.

People had a lot to gain by becoming volunteers, said Mrs Doyle, such as maintaining and developing skills, making new people, and keeping busy. Volunteering could increase personal networks, which could eventually lead to a job offer.

Depression often went hand in hand with unemployment and concern about the financial future, Mrs Doyle said. Volunteering could help people get through the recession in a positive way, she said.

"Without volunteers, the Marlborough community stops. They are absolutely critical."

Marlborough had an "exceptional record" of volunteering, with more than 120 non-profit organisations using "thousands" of volunteers. She said many organisations had taken funding cuts because funders were feeling the credit crunch too, and the demand for funding had increased. There was plenty of volunteer work available including as a gardener, driver, receptionist and shop assistant.

"The financial crisis seems to be unending bad news. But there can be some silver linings. A stronger, healthier community benefits everyone," she said.

- The Marlborough Express