A free food bank for the vulnerable will be available at Turrumburra Park, this Saturday, 10 May 2025, from 11 am. Turrumburra Park is located on the corner of Centennial Avenue and Epping Road Lane Cove North.
It will be organised by UniSocial Australia, a partnership of all the community outreach groups associated with the The Universal Church of the Kingdom of God (UCKG).
UCKG food bank runs multiple projects of this nature around various locations in Sydney including Liverpool, Chatswood, Blacktown and other surrounding areas providing hampers for anyone facing financial difficulties and in need of food.
Those seeking a hamper don’t need to register and can turn up on the day for collection. There should be between 35 to 70 available.
Money for the drives are raised purely through fundraisers with the help of volunteers.
“What we do is not funded by the government. It’s purely paid by our volunteer fundraisers, like our fundraiser from Bunnings, that’s how we get our funds, and then we buy the food and help the community,” a representative from the church group, Hawa, said.
The aim of the bank is to provide weekly food distributions to assist families and individuals facing food insecurity. They not only host on-site food hampers collections but also roll-out on-call delivery services for those unable to travel.
The organisation currently has about 50 volunteers on-staff. The groups involved are the Victory Youth Group (VYG), Caleb Group (Seniors), Patient Care, Night Angels, Rescue of Dignity, and others with the goal of helping those in need.
The church group said they have noticed many people not only lacking financial resources but also dealing with family instability, addictions, depression, anxiety, illnesses and other issues, in every place they visit, leading them to feel lonely or abandoned. They say their goal is to change this.
“Whenever our volunteers distribute the hampers, we always make ourselves available to talk with people so they can take away not just the hamper, but also words of strength, hope and faith,” a statement from Unisocial read.
“They need to know they are not alone – someone cares about them as individuals.”
Although the offerings come from the principle instilled in their church’s beliefs, volunteers also help the vulnerable due to principles stemmed from personal experiences.
“I came from a refugee background, and being in a war zone as a refugee, it was very hard for us to have basic food. So I know exactly how it is not to have proper food or not to have a meal in your table,” Hawa shared with ITC.
“There’s so many opportunities in this country, but there’s people going hungry, and that’s not right. So that’s why we go out there, to give food to people. Because when you make someone very happy and put a smile to their face they will be hopeful for next day, knowing there’s people out there who care.”
Each week the charity looks for two locations for distribution. The hampers generally include canned foods like beans, lentils and vegetables, as well as rice, pasta, bread, cereals, milk and cookies. They always provide a variety of vegetables and fruits.
The food drive will be available from 11 am at Turrumburra Park, Lane Cove West (opposite 42 Centennial Ave, Lane Cove).
If you’d like to know more information or want to inform the group of people in need in your neighbourhood, you can by calling (02) 9602 9837 or emailing [email protected].
