Gift of Bread facts for kids
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| Formation | 14 April 2007 |
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| Headquarters | Suite 2, Level 3A 1 Bligh Street, Sydney |
| Products | Bread |
| Services | Food rescue |
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Director
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Marcel De Maria |
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Director
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Valerian Rego |
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Secretary
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Nick Tropea |
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Parent organization
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Medius Dei Limited |
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Volunteers (2016)
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270 |
Gift of Bread is an Australian group that helps people by sharing food. Their main goal is simple: to share bread! They want to build strong, friendly communities. They also work to stop food waste and help the environment.
Gift of Bread volunteers collect extra bread from bakeries and shops. They give this bread for free to many charities. These charities then give the bread to people who need it most. This includes people who are struggling or feel alone. A group called OzHarvest, which also rescues food, says that bakeries often make a lot of bread. This is to make their shelves look full.
How Gift of Bread Started
Gift of Bread began in 2007. It started with just one person. This person collected and gave out leftover bread every Friday. The bread came from a local Bakers Delight store.
More volunteers and bakeries joined the program over time. The group grew a lot. By 2018, Gift of Bread was handling and delivering 290,000 bags of bread each year.
In 2016, the Canterbury League Club saw how important this project was. They gave Gift of Bread a Toyota HiAce van. This meant the group relied less on volunteers' cars. Bread could be collected and given out faster and more easily.
A community leader, Dr. George Peponis, said that bread is a simple item. But it is a main food in many diets. Almost every culture has some type of bread. He noted that bread is not just food. It also brings people together. Everyone has a basic right to enough food for their health.
In May 2017, The Daily Telegraph newspaper wrote about Gift of Bread. This was during National Volunteer Week. In August 2017, Jo Haylen, a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, praised Gift of Bread.
In May 2018, Gift of Bread got a second van. It was named Spirit of Faith. This was possible because of donations. The NSW Government, Inner West Council, and Amato's Liquor Mart all helped.
In 2020, Marcel De Maria, who started Gift of Bread, won an award. He was named a Westfield Local Hero. This award came with a $10,000 grant for Gift of Bread.
In October 2022, a third van was added. It was a Toyota HiAce SLWB. This van was named Spirit of Charity. In August 2023, the older Toyota H200 vans were replaced. Two newer Toyota H300 SLWB vans took their place.
How They Work
At the end of the day, volunteers pick up extra bread. They also collect other bakery items. These come from shops in the Inner West area of Sydney. The products are then taken to a special center. Here, they are prepared and given out. The main center is in Tempe, New South Wales. There are also more than ten other smaller centers.
Bread loaves are sliced and put into bags. Rolls and other bakery items are also packaged. These packages are then given for free. They go to charities, boarding houses, and nursing homes. They also go to community groups, schools, and churches.
Some of the main groups that receive bread from Gift of Bread include the Exodus Foundation, Australian Red Cross, Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, and Youth Off The Streets.
Gift of Bread pays for its work through donations. They also raise money by holding sausage sizzles. An annual dinner also helps them raise funds.
See also
