Project organizers with the Mayor of Senneterre, Nathalie-Ann Pelchat (left).
The Senneterre Suicide Prevention Center (CPS) inaugurated a community pantries project on Thursday.
Based on the principle of street libraries, these community pantries allow the population to share non-perishable foodstuffs. Three boxes have been installed, in front of the municipal library, near the church and at the Maison de la famille.
The CPS thus hopes to come to the aid of people who find themselves in a situation of vulnerability, a phenomenon that has amplified since the pandemic.
We were inspired by an initiative discovered on Facebook, in another country, to help the homeless, explains Sylvie Sabourin, director general of the CPS of Senneterre.
“We adapted it for Monsieur et Madame Tout-le-monde. We have seen an increase in the cost of living and psychological distress since the pandemic. Lack of food can contribute to increased stress. We want to create a network of sharing, of benevolence. »
— Sylvie Sabourin, from the Senneterre Suicide Prevention Center
The CPS, which obtained a grant from the Fonds québécois d'initiatives sociales (FQIS) for this project , will ensure the maintenance and proper functioning of the pantries.
We know that psychological distress is not experienced only in Senneterre. We would like our idea to grow elsewhere, adds Ms. Sabourin.
