Volunteer calls for people to support food charity
By Laura Lyne
A LOCAL volunteer with Irish food distribution charity FoodCloud is calling upon Tallaght residents to get involved with the charity, which redistributes surplus food from stores to charities across Ireland.
Ken Cooper, who lives in Springfield, has been volunteering with the organisation since 2014, and has seen it grow significantly.
Due to its growth, the charity, which has a partnership with Tesco and Marks & Spencer, is looking to start working with charities throughout Tallaght, Clondalkin and their surrounding areas.
Ken contacted The Echo to call for volunteers from throughout Tallaght as the charity reports more than one million meals were donated to charities in 2015.
Ken said: “I started volunteering with Foodcloud in 2014 in its first year, and it has grown significantly since.
“It’s based in the city centre, and two people go out every morning and evening to collect unused food to bring to a charity.
“There’s a mixture of people involved with it now, but the average age of volunteers would be late twenties to thirties.
“I’d be considered a grandad of the group. I had previously worked with the Credit Union for 12 years, but I gave that up around the same time I started working with Foodcloud.
“When it started, I’d be out every single week but now Foodcloud has gotten so busy, the van that it has is working around the clock.
“It would be great to get some people from Tallaght involved with Foodcloud, especially as it expands.
“We’re starting with some training this week, with plans to get it started in the summer.”
Further information about Foodcloud and information on how to volunteer can be found at www.food.cloud.
