Scribe pens book on gangs page 9
Cougars at their best at B.C.’s page 19
Tuesday March 19, 2013
Serving Surrey and North Delta www.surreyleader.com
Delays in ‘Surrey Six’ trial
The food bank was created as a temporary measure during the 1983 recession. Today, it is a crucial part of the social safety net.
by Boaz Joseph
F
rank Bucholtz remembers how bad it was 30 years ago. The B.C. unemployment rate was between 14 and 15 per cent, 30 per cent for people aged 15-19. Surrey alone had 19,000 unemployed. Rising food costs and high interest rates worked collectively to stress those already on the economic margins. “It was pretty grim,” says Bucholtz, now the editor of The Langley Times. Bucholtz, a Surrey Leader reporter in the ’80s writing on the economic woes, had his own five shifts a week reduced to four in early 1983 when he first penned a story with the headline: “Food bank in operation.” The story was published on Wednesday, March 9 – one week after “a food bank for the underemployed” opened at Evergreen Mall on Fraser Highway and 152 Street. “Donations to the food bank have been coming in steadily,” he wrote. “Many individuals, service clubs and churches are pitching in to help out.” The phone number listed at the end of the story was 581-5443 (the same one as today, minus the 604 prefix). Among those initially pitching in was Barry Shiles, a member of the North Surrey Lions Club, which donated a $558 cheque to cover the first month’s operating expenses. The now-retired 45-year Safeway veteran and former food bank board member says the society, run by “working stiffs,” struggled for legitimacy early on, and didn’t develop a business model until years later. It was meant to be Barry Shiles temporary emergency measure to give people a cushion until the economic cloud had lifted. “If you had a job back then, you couldn’t come,” he says. “It was so hard back then. People came in hungry. We bought food and fed them. We can’t argue with that.” At the time, the food bank served 200-300 clients per month.
“It was so hard back then. People came in hungry. We bought food and fed them. We can’t argue with that.”
See PEOPLE IN NEED / Page 14
Next court date in September for three of the five accused by Sheila Reynolds THree Of the five men charged
SURREY LEADER PHOTO / COURTESY OF THE SURREY ARCHIVES
cutline from The leader, March 9, 1983: A cheque to cover the first month’s operating expenses of the new surrey food bank (the surrey self-Help society for the Underemployed) was presented by Wilf stacey and Barry shiles of the north surrey lions club to Jim Voight of surrey co-ordinating centre, as the food bank opened its doors to those in need. looking on are Ald. clayton campbell and Jakob Klassen, a volunteer.
WHAT GIVES? The Surrey Food Bank – for 30 years
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in connection with the murder of six people in a Surrey highrise in 2007 won’t face trial until mid-September, and trials for the others won’t likely begin until after that. Matthew Johnston, Cody Haevischer, and Quang Vinh Thang (Michael) Le are all charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder in the so-called “Surrey Six” case, chris Mohan in which four alleged gangsters and two innocent bystanders were killed at the Balmoral Tower apartments on Oct. 19, 2007. The trio of accused murderers were initially ed scheduled to face schellenberg trial in May, but on Thursday, that date was pushed back four months because of the volume of material lawyers have to review.
Save time, save money.
See SURREY SIX / Page 3