Another Community Fridge is set to open in the Okanagan, this time in Penticton. There is one already located in Lake Country and another at The Kelowna Unitarian Church.
“I think Penticton … being a smaller community especially, a lot of people are struggling with inflation and the pandemic … to make ends meet,” said Allison Howard, Penticton Community Fridge organizer.
The Community Fridge is a barrier-free outdoor space where people can access food and hygiene products donated by the community. Anyone can access the fridge 24-hours a day, seven days a week.
“The fridge offers the opportunity to keep food cold. Bakery products, groceries, and especially fresh produce. We already have places that are ready to donate once we open because there is a huge surplus of food that is just thrown out,” said Howard.
Howard and Dave Corbeil were inspired by the Lake Country Community Fridge and have decided to take on the project.
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“We see how much grocery prices go up. We can manage just fine but a lot of people can’t. So, we thought we must have a role in that and we can help,” added Howard.
Howard and Corbeil are currently working with local non-profit organizations to find a location in downtown Penticton.
“I think it is good for it to be downtown. It will help serve the population of people who need it most,” said Corbeil.
They hope to have the fridge up and running in a few weeks.
“We are soliciting donations from local building supply places to give us materials to get going. Once we have that, we could have it built in a week or two,” said Corbeil.
This will be their second community project as they already have a Little Free Library and reading bench outside their home.
“I thought that we are both due for another project. We thought that this could be to some degree a fun thing but also a very necessary thing to be involved in. This will definitely keep us busy for the next bit,” said Corbeil.
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