A young Derry woman has used poetry to highlight the impact a local foodbank has had on her life.
Keeley Ena Anderson has battled with alcohol addiction in recent years.
During this time, she became a user of the Foyle Foodbank which supplies food to people in need.
A new recipe book has been created by the local foodbank which aims to help users cook healthy meals with the items they receive.
Keeley has written a poem about the support she received from the Foyle Foodbank and its staff.
Her poem has been included in the new book.
The Foyle Foodbank was originally run by the local Rotary Club and was based at temporary accommodation at Pump Street in the city centre.
However, the charity is now run by the Trussell Trust which manages a network of 400 foodbanks throughout Britain.
Earlier this year, the Foyle Foodbank was given a permanent base at Springtown Industrial Estate by Apex Housing.
From there, the organisation helps hundreds of families each week.
Just recently, a food appeal at the Tesco store at Strand Road in the city resulted in almost two tonnes of products being donated to the foodbank.
Maria McGlynn, manager of the Foyle Foodbank, said they received great support from the local community.
“People in Derry have really taken us to their hearts,” she said.
“Now that we are managed by the Trussell Trust it means that we are linked up Tesco and have benefitted greatly from this.
“Beforehand, the leftover food from the Tesco store at Strand Road was being sent out of the city. However, we now receive all that food.
“We also had an appeal recently at the Tesco store for food and received another great response, with around two tonnes of products being donated.”
Maria said she hoped the new recipe book would help the foodbank users to create healthy meals.
“All the ingredients needed for the meals are contained in the packs that we hand out.
“The recipes are very simple to follow so we hope that people will be to develop their own cooking skills as well as having a healthy meals.”
Maria added they were delighted that Keeley’s poem had been included in the new book.
“Keeley is a great example of someone who has used the foodbank to help them through a tough time in their life.
“When we read her poem we thought that it basically sums up what the foodbank is about and we were delighted that she let us use it in the book.”
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