This Tuesday, November 19, marked the launch of the Restos du coeur winter campaign. In Béziers, at the Courbet center, every week, the association's sixty volunteers deliver an average of 13,000 meals to families in need.
“You know, we don’t need to advertise…”, smiles mischievously with a touch of bitterness Jean-Claude Cuinat-Guerraz, the manager of Restos du coeur on rue Amiral-Courbet, at the bottom of avenue Wilson. It's a little after 11:30 a.m. this Tuesday, November 19, the day of the launch of the Restos winter campaign. The place will soon close its doors. The volunteers receive the latest beneficiaries of the association. A lady from Ukraine insists on having a date. Jean-Claude Cuinat-Guerratz asks him to come back in the afternoon: “We are open three days a week, Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, morning and afternoon, he specifies. On Tuesday, we attack at 8:30 a.m. with the volunteers because we receive a delivery from Montpellier which comes from one of the seven warehouses that the association has in France.”
Around sixty volunteers
Around sixty volunteers take turns in the Béziers center on rue Courbet. And there is no shortage of beneficiaries. Registrations for the winter campaign began two weeks ago and already 600 families have registered: “Actually we are never closed, we have been operating all summer and up until now,” explains the manager.
Increase in scales
For this winter campaign, the Restos du coeur have revised their copy. Many more beneficiaries are welcomed: “There have been three improvements, relief Jean-Claude Cuinat-Guerratz. First of all, we favor isolated people more and there are many of them. The scales (difference between resources and rent with all charges) have also been increased. This will allow us to receive more people. Finally, we will increase the number of meals served.”
13,000 meals per week
During the summer campaign, an average of 10,000 meals were served per week. This winter, the number will climb to 13,000: “We give people something to make meals, précise Jean-Claude Cuinat-Guerratz. There are side dishes (vegetables, starchy foods, etc.), desserts, proteins and dairy products. There are also specific products for babies up to 36 months with, this year, additional fruits, vegetables and yogurts.
Most donations come from businesses. Donations from individuals or various subsidies allow the Restaurants to provide the rest (35%): “We also have certain local supermarkets which supply us with fruits and vegetables. Fourteen bakers give us their unsold bread. We have a van which regularly visits the bakeries!”
France
