Fraser Valley Gleaners

A huge THANK YOU to our amazing volunteers who helped make our first public Open House a resounding success! It was so fun giving guests an experience they’ll remember. Thank you to all who came out including special guests and dignitaries. We appreciate your support as we carry on the important work of food recovery for humanitarian aid. If you missed the Open House, you are always welcome to come by for a Tour at 10:15am any weekday (closed on stat holidays).

Come on out to our Open House TODAY, Saturday, July 20th 10am-2pm. All ages welcome! Bring the kids and grandkids for a fun and educational experience! Bring a co-worker, bring a friend!

Participate in (or watch - your choice!) an Interactive Tour, Grab a freezie and a hot dog, Talk to one of our amazing volunteers who help keep the place running, and find out about how FV Gleaners recovers food and turns it into humanitarian aid. Opening Ceremony at 10am with the Mayor or come by anytime 10am-2pm.

Our Open House is THIS SATURDAY!
July 20th 10am-2pm. Bring your friends and family for an interactive tour of our production plant!

Food Aid sent to Ethiopia.
Ethiopia continues to suffer with widespread poverty. Today we sent out a shipping container full of food aid to help. Our partner Compassionate Resource Warehouse will distribute it to those in need.

1.2 Million Meals sent to Cuba today

Cuba is facing a national food shortage, and chronic and severe shortages of basic necessities.

Thank you to the many volunteers and donors who help us to send food aid to those in need.

Happy 95th Birthday, John!
Our volunteers are an inspiration!

Thanks Inland Group for Volunteering with Us!
A very productive morning with the help of these fine folks!

Mark your calendars and plan to come by and check us out! Open House on Saturday, July 20th 10am-2pm. Bring your friends and family!

Our June 2024 Newsletter is here!

Abbotsford Agriculture Bus Tour came to FVG! We had a great time showing two busloads of guests all that we do here at the Gleaners. Thank you Chamber of Commerce for the invite to be a stop in this year's tour!

Thankful for those who Pray for us!
To God be the Glory!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We are so very thankful for those who are praying for the ministry here at Fraser Valley Gleaners! Scripture tells us “in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving to let our requests be made known to God.” (Philippians 4:6) And this is the confidence that we have toward him, that if we ask anything according to His will He hears us. (1 John 5:14) And we know that apart from Him we can do nothing. (John 15:5) One day, on the other side of eternity, we will see the work that was accomplished by those who prayed for us. Thank you, prayer partners, truly, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

How absolutely amazing it is that the God of the universe, the Holy, Holy, Holy One, turns His ear towards us! He who gives us our daily breath encourages us to partner with Him! To God be the glory! Not to us, Lord, not to us but to your name be the glory, because of your love and faithfulness. Psalm 115:1

Thankful for our Service Providers!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We are thankful for the many service providers who help us in our work. Companies like Cascade Containerboard packaging who have been supplying us with our boxes for shipping at no cost for 13 years! Other companies have donated equipment or trucking or IT help, etc. And of course, many volunteers also donate their expertise to drive forklift or repair equipment or bookkeeping or offer other services they have experience in. Service Providers, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

Thankful for our Distribution Partners!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! While we do everything soup related, we rely on trusted Distribution Partners to deliver the soup to those in need. Our partners are responsible to cover the shipping costs, manage the soup distribution, share the gospel along with the food aid, and send us a report. Shipping food has its challenges. Paperwork, delays at the ports, catastrophes and crisis’s in country are some of the hurdles they face. We are thankful for their perseverance to get the food to those who so desperately need it. Distribution Partners, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

Thankful for our Financial Donors!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We know that even with produce given to us and volunteers to do the work, there will always be costs involved. Gas for the produce pick ups, monthly utilities to run the dryers and keep the lights on, admin costs for printing newsletters, equipment and supplies, staff to book groups and keep the daily operations, and the list goes on. It takes a lot to run this not-so-small ministry that is making a huge impact. We are thankful for our financial donors who give generously to keep our ministry going. Financial Donors, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We are thankful for the staff who carry the daily responsibilities of the operation of the plant and the many goings on that keep the ministry going. We are especially thankful for the legacy of service of Carl & Elaine Goosen who gave their hearts and talents to FVG for 20 years. Anyone who comes after is standing on the shoulders of giants and we will always be grateful. Carl & Elaine, and all past and present staff, we couldn’t have done this without you! Thank you!

Thankful for our Volunteers! A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We are thankful for the many, many volunteer hours put in here at FVG to make this milestone possible. Many volunteers have been coming for years. These photos are of volunteers who have been with us since the beginning! Can you imagine how many bowls of soup they each have contributed?! It’s staggering to think of. Of course we are also very thankful for the new volunteers coming to carry on the work. Volunteers, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

Thankful for our Produce & Pulse Suppliers!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We are thankful for our produce and pulse suppliers! The produce is full of natural vitamins and nutrients and the pulses bring protein to the soup, making it a complete meal loaded with nutrition. Some of our suppliers have been donating to FVG since the beginning! It’s a mind-boggling amount of produce & pulses donated over the years! And the good Lord continues to bring us new suppliers as well. Produce and Pulse Suppliers, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! A not-for-profit organization cannot do its work without a governing board of directors. We are thankful for the men and women who have served and are presently serving FVG on our board who have carried the responsibility of the overall effectiveness of the ministry and the wise stewardship of the financial and human resources entrusted to FVG. It’s a weighty responsibility and we are thankful our board seeks to serve God in this way. Board of Directors, past & present, we couldn’t do this without you! Thank you!

Photo: 2001 Board of Directors: Left to right (back) Vic Martens, Peter Breederland, Jack Friesen, Jake Janzen. (front) Betty Thiessen, John Fast, John Martens and Peter Funk.

A Quarter Billion Meals since opening! We are thankful for the Founders of FV Gleaners. Praising God that He put it on their hearts and minds to set out to begin this ministry in the Fraser Valley of converting surplus produce into food for hungry people around the world. FVG became a society on June 16,1999 and there’s been no looking back since!. FVG Founders, we couldn’t have done this without you! Thank you!

Major FVG Milestone Hit! To God be the glory, great things He has done!

Quarter Billion Soup Servings Since We Opened!

Check out our virtual tour with our General Manager, Joel Pasma

The Fraser Valley Gleaners Soup making Process The Fraser Valley Gleaners produces millions of soup bags every year. This is a video that tells the story of how the soup is created from produce donated an...

Food aid for India & South Sudan

While most of our food aid gets packed in shipping containers and sent 960 boxes at a time, we also love to be able to send small amounts in luggage with mission groups and others who have connections to Christian ministries on the ground. Recently we've been able to send some soup mix to India and South Sudan. We pray that these small amounts would make a big difference and that God would multiply the food and His Kingdom!

We will have three students at various times this summer. There's lots to keep them busy with! Please pray for them as they join our team for the summer.

Ervin joins the FVG 90's club!
A little late but Happy 90th Birthday Ervin!

A team from Capernwray Thetis Island volunteered with us and also blessed us with a beautiful song. Volunteers were humming the hymn the rest of the morning!

6,000 meals heading to Colombia!

Suitcases packed with soup mix will be sent to Colombia to meet the needs of impoverished children, youth and families. Thank you SOLAHIS for partnering with us to feed hungry people.

Thank you to everyone who came out to the AGM and barbeque! A great time was had! Over 125 people attended. Art Kamphuis started the meeting off right with the invocation and prayer. Reports of the 2023 ministry year were shared and our General Manager, Joel Pasma, gave a clear explanation for the need and desire for an expansion which the members responded to with overwhelming support. A video slide show compilation was shown highlighting soup distribution in the Philippines and Pakistan last year - a reminder again that this is why we do what we do here at FVG.

After the meeting everyone enjoyed a wonderful barbeque put on by the amazing team at FVG. So many people helping out behind the scenes for both the meeting and the lunch - we thank you all! We look forward with anticipation and prayer for what the Lord has for us in the coming year and beyond. To God be the glory!

Touring Four Gleaners Facilities in Ontario

Recently Joel & I joined Russ Phillips (manager of North Okanagan), for a visit to the four Gleaners' facilities in Ontario. Thank you to Russ for organizing this! We had an incredible time meeting the managers and getting the grand tour for each facility. It was so great to see the operations in person. Lots of idea sharing and each manager team was kind to give us plenty of time for all our questions.

Pete Wierenga from Niagara Gleaners said it well:
Networking with other Gleaners in this way is extremely valuable as we are a very small group doing some rather unique work.

Thank you Ryan Horst, Pete Wierenga, Elaine Merkus, Tamara Froese, Joel Epp, Tina Quiring and the many others we met and got to talk with. Thank you to our board for sending us on this very helpful tour!

Look out FVG, Joel and I have new ideas coming your way!

Summer Internships at Fraser Valley Gleaners! Tell your friends and family to apply. Must be 15-30 years old. For more info email us at [email protected]