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Oak Bay Village shares the spirit of the season with area food banks

The Village’s shops, services and restaurants sparkle throughout the holiday season
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Engel and Völkers were the top participants in the 2022 Realtor Food Bank Challenge, held in Oak Bay in conjunction with the Lighted Truck Convoy. Their food and cash donations were the equivalent of 2,794 pounds of food! Oak Bay BIA photo

Oak Bay’s holiday spirit has brought far more than a village bedecked in sparkling lights.

In conjunction with the Island Equipment Owners Association Truck Light Convoy earlier this month, Oak Bay realtors from Engel and Völkers, Pemberton Holmes and The Agency brought in much-needed cash and food donations for local food banks. In all, the Realtor Food Bank Challenge raised an amazing $10,749 and more than 1,900 pounds of food for the region’s food banks.

Congratulations go to Engel and Völkers, the 2022 Realtor Food Bank Challenge Champion, whose food and cash donations netted the equivalent of 2,794 pounds of food!

The Rainbow Kitchen team receives the donations from the 2022 Realtor Food Bank Challenge in Oak Bay. Oak Bay BIA photo
The Rainbow Kitchen team receives the donations from the 2022 Realtor Food Bank Challenge in Oak Bay. Oak Bay BIA photo

The donations were shared among several local community food banks, with the bulk of the cash donations going directly to The Mustard Seed through their donation link, and most of the food donations going to Rainbow Kitchen.

“The Rainbow Kitchen staff were so grateful for the donation – their executive director, Patrick Johnstone, told us the donation is changing lives and changing Christmas,” said Heather Leary, with the Oak Bay Business Improvement Association, after delivering the donations.

In addition, $400 was donated to The Soup Kitchen downtown, along with several hundred pounds of food. Anything they can’t use will go to the food bank at St John the Divine.

The Pemberton Holmes team brought in more than 1,700 pounds of food for the 2022 Realtor Food Bank Challenge in Oak Bay. Oak Bay BIA photo
The Pemberton Holmes team brought in more than 1,700 pounds of food for the 2022 Realtor Food Bank Challenge in Oak Bay. Oak Bay BIA photo

But Oak Bay’s Realtor Challenge wasn’t the only way local residents and businesses have been giving back. As the lighted truck parade drove down Oak Bay Avenue Dec. 3, volunteers from the Oak Bay BIA and Rainbow Kitchen collected an additional $560 and an estimated 500 pounds of food for the Esquimalt-based non-profit – a terrific example of a smaller local community stepping up for another, Leary says.

And during the BIA’s Oak Bay Village Light-up Nov. 27, food vendor fees and Santa photo donations raised another $517.45 for the Oak Bay Firefighters’ non-essential equipment fund.

Christmas continues in the Village

With the Avenue all a-twinkle, the community continues to welcome shoppers for the holiday season, with many businesses continuing their own initiatives to give back.

The Oak Bay Village has become a favourite destination for people from throughout the region, drawn not only to the festive setting, but to the unique array of local boutiques, shops and dining opportunities – making it easy to check everything off your holiday list, all in one place!