The rising cost of living means this mom of 3 goes hungry so her kids can eat
Before the pandemic, this family of 5 had enough to live, but the same income doesn't keep up now
Tara Saunders sits in her kitchen. Her house on Bell Island, in Newfoundland's Conception Bay, is surrounded by thin layers of snow. Here, she takes care of her family of five and the pets that roam from room to room.
In the past few years, what's been running through her mind is how to sustain the modest life she's built here.
"Before COVID, I used to go to Walmart and fill my purse with school snacks," Saunders said. "Groceries cost me a fraction of what it does today."
She and her husband have been living on income support ever since he had to leave work because of medical issues. The money was enough to buy the necessities and treat her family from time to time, she says. But that changed when the rising cost of living suddenly made the same amount of money not enough.
"Not long before Christmas we were down to nothing. Literally nothing," she said.
"My husband and I sometimes went without because we wanted to make sure what we did have — it was given to the children."
That's how Saunders found herself posting on a Facebook group called Neighbours in Need.
Special requests for Christmas included soap
The group was created during the historic winter storm in 2020 that left parts of Newfoundland buried under snow for days, says founder Cortney Barber. It was a way to connect people looking for help with those able to offer it.
The group now has 30,000 members, and people post every day asking for spare food and clothing.
"We've realized that people were asking for basic necessities," Barber said. "Things that a lot of people take for granted like groceries, shampoo, conditioner, dish soap, laundry soap, toilet paper. These are some people's requests for Christmas because it's things that they can't afford on their grocery bill anymore."
Those "Christmas requests" were part of a program launched by their group before the holidays to donate presents or "wishes" for people in need. About 1,000 people signed up.
Barber said she was overwhelmed with the requests. Not because of how many there were — but because many people didn't ask for leisure items or new gadgets.
Instead, they asked for the very basics: dish soap, garbage bags and food.
"This gentleman was 75 years old and his neighbour had given him a loaf of bread that they had baked and passed it on, and that was the only food that he had for an entire week," Barber said.
"And when I asked him what he wanted for Christmas, he wanted a turkey or ham."
She said she reminded him that he could ask for anything and he insisted on that food because he could cook it and it will last for weeks. To him, that would be the Christmas miracle, she said.
Sharing experiences with hunger
It's a recurring story among the hundreds of messages that Barber and her team sift through in an effort to assist as many people as possible. Barber says these are only the individuals who reach out or have family members who message on their behalf, and she suspects more suffer in silence.
"Unless they're connected with services, which most of our seniors or not, they just don't have access to this information," Barber said. "We had people from Vancouver who were nominating their mom or their dad who they know are alone in Newfoundland."
Saunders says there are many others who share her experience of hunger and have had to confront the challenge of asking for help.
"The mental aspect of things is: where is the next meal coming from? Who am I asking for help for this time? Do I post to Neighbours in Need? Do I ask my mom and dad? Do I message a friend and ask for a loan? That's draining in itself," Saunders said.
Barber says donations are the only thing keeping her charity group afloat.
"Get out and walk your block," Barber said. "We need to get back to community because that's how we know the people who are struggling. And when you have extras on a Friday night and you made way too much food, bring over a plate, because you don't know the difference that you're making in their lives."
Saunders, too, says she understands how important it is to give and is grateful for all the help she received, saying that when she can, she gives back.
"I had $5 in my account one time, and I seen somebody had posted to Neighbours in Need.… I sent in that $5. You know, that could have bought me a loaf of bread," she said.
"But I had a loaf of bread that day."
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