CARP – Last Thursday (Aug. 15) was a perfect evening for mint tea and conversation at the Carp Ridge EcoWellness Centre. But any night is good for an $8,000 donation to the West Carleton Food Access Centre (WCFAC).

The Carp Ridge EcoWellness Centre’s charitable arm, the Carp Ridge Learning Centre, made the huge donation following a casual chat between the board of the charitable organization and the WCFAC’s Mary Braun and Sharon Roper over some mint tea and snacks.

“Katherine (Willow), our founder just loves to feed people,” Carp Ridge Learning Centre chair Jacqui Ehninger told West Carleton Online during tea. “The WCFAC is always a worthy cause. We know the work they do.”

Each year the learning centre board, which is a registered charity, makes a financial commitment to a non-profit organization.

“We can do our own projects or support others,” Ehninger said.

Braun and Roper spoke about their volunteer work at the WCFAC.

This is the time of year when donations to the WCFAC dwindle down a bit. It’s been a challenging year for the WCFAC which is completely volunteer run. The WCFAC supports about 60 families a month who need assistance with putting food on the table. Each year the WCFAC also has a Christmas basket and Angel Tree program.

This year has been a special one for the WCFAC as it also added supporting those in West Carleton affected by two different natural disasters in 2018 (a tornado and extreme flooding).

While it has certainly added challenges, the disasters also brought out more supporters.

“People with these disasters have been so generous,” Roper said. “Even those affected, they all come back and help.”

In rural West Carleton, poverty is not as noticeable as it is in the urban centres.

”There’s more in the area then you are aware of,” Braun added. “There are lots of teens that are couch surfing.”