Abbotsford (Ed Brett) —Over the weekend of September 16 and 17, the 54th annual Mennonite Central Committee British Columbia (MCC BC) Festival for World Relief at Tradex in Abbotsford generated over $1 million through donations and sales to support MCC’s global and local work feeding the world’s hungry.
Guests and donors at the Festival were invited to learn more about the tremendous global need for food, with over 830 million people living without enough to eat. The festival highlighted MCC’s ongoing work responding to hunger and poverty in war-torn South Sudan and Syria, as well as its response to local need in the Fraser Valley.
Thousands of individuals from across the Fraser Valley gathered together on Friday and Saturday at the Festival for World Relief to enjoy traditional Mennonite food, artisan crafts and artwork, donated plants and produce, homemade baked goods, a fundraising cycling event and entertainment and children’s activities.
The Festival included an exhibitor area showcasing local charitable and community organizations as well as exhibits of MCC BC’s own local programs, including Homelessness Prevention and Outreach, Indigenous Neighbours, End Abuse, and Migration and Resettlement programs.
Festival guests showed warm appreciation for performances by local artist The Arctic, Quintessential Jazz, and the Mennonite Educational Institute (MEI) Screaming Eagles Marching Band. Families enjoyed an interactive Kids Zone, Ukrainian crafts and a performance by children’s entertainer Norden the Magician.
The annual Festival is largely volunteer-powered, with thousands of local residents donating their time, goods and energy for those in need. “The need for reliable food sources across the world is substantial, and we have a responsibility to come alongside our global and local neighbours to help out,” says Wayne Bremner, MCC BC Executive Director. “Each year the Festival for World Relief is an opportunity for the MCC community and our local communities to respond to that immense challenge, and this year they responded generously again.”
For more than 100 years, MCC has worked to address challenges like hunger and displacement, responding to real and urgent needs around the world, and committed to building peace and justice. MCC carries out its relief, development and peace efforts with partners in some 45 countries, demonstrating God’s love for all in the name of Christ.
