This year’s Thanksgiving drive in London brought in enough food and money to help feed more than 11,500 people in the southwestern Ontario city. The local food bank also received a surprise donation of $85,000 from an anonymous donor.

Many more people participated in the 2025 Thanksgiving Food Drive compared to last year, helping many families in need. The food bank’s campaign this year focused on the growing number of children and youth facing food insecurity. Despite concerns about how much people would be able to contribute because of the ongoing trade war between Canada and the U.S., the community’s response was strong. “We ended up collecting more than last year,” said director Glen Pearson. “It shows how aware and caring this community really is.”

A total of 82,624 pounds of food and $131,165 in cash were collected during this year’s Thanksgiving drive, equaling about 118,658 pounds of food in total. That’s enough to feed around 11,870 people for roughly three weeks, as the food bank usually helps between 14,000 and 16,000 people each month. This total is higher than last year’s 109,408 pounds. About 60% of the food collected will be shared with other local agencies, while the rest will go directly to the food bank’s clients.

Director Glen Pearson said they’ll use some of the donated money to buy more food later. He added that an anonymous Londoner donated $85,000 after being moved by stories about child hunger in the community.

Source: Angela McInnes, CBC