Community Moment | Brett Budgell gets involved with local food bank
Brett Budgell is grateful about everything his adoptive community has given him over the past five years.
And so, the Charlottetown Islanders forward has decided to return the favor.
Every Monday after school, he heads down to the local food bank to help the volunteers serve food to the less fortunate. It’s a lot of work, but he does it with a smile on his face.
“It definitely takes good time management. We have practices in the morning and I’m a fulltime student”, says the 20-year-old. “There’s a lot to do in a day, but I can make time to help the community. It’s something I really enjoy doing.”
For him, every moment at The Upper Room Hospitality Ministry is time well spent.
“They get a lot of donations, so I help organize where you put all the food and stock the shelves”, explains the St. John’s, Newfoundland native. “If we have a big donation, I will help bring it off the truck and then place it on the shelves.”
Community work comes naturally to Budgell. He doesn’t do it because he has to.
“I just want to help raise awareness about food insecurity in Charlottetown, but also in the whole country. That’s my main goal”, explains the forward. “The idea came to me after I did a project in school on food insecurity. I did a lot of research for that project, and it became an interest of mine to find out more about that.”
“It’s not something that’s really talked about”, he adds. “Canada is supposed to be a rich country, so most people think that everybody has food on their table everyday, but that’s certainly not the case. People are only allowed to come in once a month to get food here.”
For him, that was a real eye-opener.
“It became important to me after realizing how much people don’t know that a lot of people are struggling to eat and put food on the table”, says the left winger. “I like to help, any way I can, to give something back. The community in Charlottetown has given a lot to me.”
But every visit to the Upper Room is not just hard work, it’s a lot of fun too, confesses the veteran.
“I enjoy helping people, but I also enjoy the relationships that I made at the Upper Room food bank. There’s a lot of great people working there. There are also a lot of volunteers who donate their time to help others. It’s a great thing to be a part of.”
Budgell knows that helping out is vital to the health of a community.
“Everyone is grateful when they come to visit the food bank. It’s just a great environment all around.”
Wherever his hockey journey takes him next, you can count on Brett Budgell to show up at the local food bank.
“It’s something I enjoy doing and it’s certainly something I want to keep doing. My sister also does a lot of work at different food banks back home in Newfoundland”, says the Islanders winger.
“Our parents raised us with good values, so it’s come naturally to me and my sister. I will keep giving back, wherever my career takes me in the future.”
