The spirit of giving was in downtown Peterborough on Friday morning as the Three Loonies hit the streets for their annual fundraiser to support Kawartha Food Share and Corus Feeds Kids.

This year’s fundraiser was held at George and Simcoe streets.

Over its lifetime, the fundraiser has raised $1.3 million, and organizers are hoping to raise at least $100,000 this year.

Each year, longtime volunteer Carol Corner shakes her pail at motorists and pedestrians to collect as much money as she can.

“Some mornings are better than others; today happens to be a warm one. It’s such a wonderful thing that we do here in Peterborough, and everyone is so generous and they know that there’s a need out there,” said Corner. “It’s nice that the community comes together.”

And that need to feed keeps on growing. As Peterborough-Kawartha MPP Dave Smith said, hunger is not just in the City of Peterborough.

“All across Canada, we’ve got a lot more people who are struggling to make ends meet and we’ve got a larger contingency now of homeless people. This is a need that needs to be filled. Stuff like Kawartha Food Share, they’re doing a great job with it,” said Smith.

According to longtime volunteer Dave Ralph, the number of people in the Peterborough area helped by such programs is significant.

“Currently, through our 37 food banks in Peterborough and county, (we’re) feeding close to 9,000 people a month so the need is definitely there,” Ralph said.

Every dollar raised goes towards $6 worth of food at Kawartha Food Share.

“We have lineups at our food banks all year long. People are super generous around the holidays, but there are people in need in the summer months as well so while we appreciate everyone’s support today, we hope it continues out throughout the year as well,” said Ashlee Aitken, Kawartha Food Share general manager.

If you weren’t able to make it out on Friday morning, you can always go to the Kawartha Food Share building on Neil Drive or visit its website to donate.

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