Families helping families

Facebook group offering daily support and launching fall food/ Christmas drive

It’s no secret that Newfoundlanders and Labradorians have giving hearts.

It’s also no secret that having babies and children can get costly.

When Grand Falls-Windsor’s Krisie Vedd had a 2020 baby and was collecting and giving away baby items herself, she had an idea, never dreaming how far this idea would go.

“I realized how much of a need there was locally for ‘free assistance’ with household and children’s items and decided it would be a great idea to create an online Facebook group that supports swapping of household items,” Vedd says.

So on May 5, 2020, the Facebook group FamilesHelpingFamilies was born.

“Honestly, at first I just thought this group would be for family and friends,” Vedd says. “However, we have grown into an admin team of 10 fabulous ladies and an amazing village of over 5,000 members. (It’s) very exciting; we hope to continue to strive and grow. Our goal is to assist as many families as possible.”

While the main goal of the group supports giving or taking (free of charge) of any type of household items, with members posting items they no longer need and claiming items they are in need of, after noticing an ongoing need for emergency grocery assistance, the group decided to also offer that aid.

“We try to bridge the gap between ‘grocery day’ for most and the local food banks,”

Vedd says. “We also offer grocery assistance where members either post their request on the main page or they can message us privately to post/collect grocery items for them.”

They receive and fulfill requests daily, serving all of Newfoundland, with a main location in Central, and in the last year they have assisted multiple families.

“This is a team effort,” Vedd says.

Last year, the group started a hamper drive, which turned out great, she says, and this year they are expanding on that.

“We helped many families’ Christmas time, but this is our first year organizing and creating an official template for this Christmas season and hopefully more to come,” Vedd says.

The group is currently accepting donations for Christmas hampers. People can help in many ways, from sponsoring a family this Christmas with grocery items and/or Christmas gifts to sharing the flyers for extra networking opportunities.

They will also be approaching local businesses in the upcoming days for donations and food box placements for hampers.

“It definitely is a lot of work to maintain the page and continue to fulfill daily requests, however our whole team has a passion for helping others and attempting to put some extra goodness out into our communities,” Vedd says. “We all truly love what we do here. It’s very rewarding.”

Another member of the administration team is Felicia Abbott from Lewisporte who got involved when she found herself needing assistance.

“Just over a year ago, I found myself in dire need of grocery help,” Abbott said. “I'm a mom to five kids.”

It was September, Abbott explains, and after getting her children ready for school, she found herself completely broke and knew she needed help. She reached out to FamiliesHelpingFamilies and a couple of days later she had a huge food hamper delivered.

“No mom should ever have to worry if they have enough food for their kids, and it was thanks to this amazing group that I didn't,” Abbott says. “I promised as soon as I was back on my feet again I would pay it forward.”

In November of 2020, Abbott saw a post team member Kim Barry-Patey put on the group for a Lewisporte family who needed assistance, so Abbott reached out to help. She shared her post to her personal page and helped with some donations as well. Not long after, she received a message from Barry-Patey asking if she would be interested in joining the team.

“I was overjoyed and I began as a MOD and point person for the Lewisporte area,” Abbott said. “This group filled a missing piece in my life, I have always loved to volunteer and help others, but this group really gave me the opportunity to showcase the passion and drive I have for helping others.”

A year later Abbott says she is now an admin member and heading up the first official fall food/Christmas drive alongside two amazing ladies, Kim Barry-Patey and Ashley Patey, with the support of Krissi Vedd, admin Angie CampbellBrown and the rest of the team.

“So far we seem to be having a good response; some businesses have offered to let us put a donation box in their stores, I have had another business offer a grocery gift card, plus we have had some of our amazing members reach out with food donations and also to help with Christmas gifts, but we still have a ways to go and need as much help from our group and local communities as possible,” Abbott said.

Abbott is working on getting the flyer to reach as far as possible — into schools for parents and staff, on Facebook groups and business pages — and reaching out to businesses for support.

“There are so many ways you can get involved,” Abbott says. “If you’re a business owner and would allow us to have a donation box in your store front or would be interested in donating to or sponsoring one of our families this Christmas, reach out to us. Anybody can reach out to us with a food donation, Christmas gift or a cash donation that would go towards items needed.”

This is a rewarding venture, Abbott says.

“The biggest reward for me in all of this is the feeling you get and feel when a family in need opens their door and you’re standing there with a food package and you can instantly see the relief and emotion in their faces,” she says.

“It truly is a beautiful feeling, but even better I have gained a whole new family, I work alongside some amazing ladies that have truly became family to me and gained friendships that will last a lifetime.”

Vedd is also appreciative of the opportunity and support of the group.

“FamiliesHelpingFamilies may have started out small but it has grown into something beautiful and I feel truly blessed to be a part of the magic we do here,” Vedd says. “If you or someone you know are in need, reach out to us. If you are interested in helping our movement, reach out to us. Our village has amazing members who are always around to help.”

You can find them on Facebook under FamiliesHelpingFamilies or you can contact them via email at FamiliesHelpingFamiliesnl@ gmail.com.