Everyone should have someone like Amina Abu-Bakare in their corner. Abu-Bakare is the heart of the local Isthmus chapter, an organization dedicated to providing food to children to have over the weekend, when school food programs are unavailable.
One out of five children are food insecure. Nationally, Isthmus provides over 450,000 meals to roughly 2,500 kids across Canada every year.
The program has improved children’s test scores, reading skills, health and attendance, as well as having a positive influence on student behaviour.
As I walked into Ogden School to meet up with Amina Abu-Bakare on Isthmus packing day, I was pulled in for a big hug! It’s hard to believe I’ve known her for 14 years, when my son and I helped to pack the bags of food that would be given to kids at schools throughout the city. We loved being a part of an organization that helped ensure kids wouldn’t go hungry over the weekend.
Here we are in 2026 and Amina Abu-Bakare is a tireless force who hasn’t slowed down since day one. She is constantly making the calls and rallies the packers and drivers who deliver that essential weekend nutrition to our schools. Amina started creating awareness and asking for donations in 2013. The first 100 bags were packed on February 4, 2014, with donations from a foundation in Toronto. The program has now been running locally for 12 years. Originally called “Blessings in a Backpack”, the name officially changed to Isthmus in 2017. The charity’s website explains an Isthmus is a strip of land that connects two larger areas.
While there are feeding programs for children during school hours, Isthmus connects hungry children with food to eat on weekends when they would otherwise go hungry.
Many kids will go home to a treat or play while they wait for supper to be made. But some will have very little or go without snacks and supper entirely, because there just isn’t any food in the house. Sometimes families have to choose between food and bills, or it may be a few days until payday-there are many reasons why cupboards may be bare. Empty cupboards adversely affect kids. Again, as the Isthmus mission states, it’s impossible to learn when you are hungry.
I asked Amina if any teachers have witnessed the kids doing better in class with the help of this weekend nourishment. She said while it was hard for the teachers to quantify the impact the food had on a student’s performance, the behavioural changes speak volumes. Attendance is noticeably up on Fridays because children want to be sure to be there to pick up their food bags. Some kids also bring items from their weekend bags back on Monday or Tuesday to use as their lunch food, so they don’t have to access the food items at school.
These observations align perfectly with a 2021 report from the Ontario Dietitians in Public Health, which shows that a healthy diet and consistent eating behaviours may be associated with better mental health, better self-esteem, and better academic achievement. I can’t help but think about what a difference this has made for so many kids.
The cost to feed one child on weekends throughout the school year is $120. Amina says it’s truly a community effort. “Various groups in the city fundraise to help ensure the children get the needed food supply to stay in school and get their education. The Thunder Bay Correctional Centre came on board last school year and provided us with apples and carrots from their farm.” She adds, “I have also taken out a membership with RFDA to ensure our children get a better assortment of food items.”
Last school year, Amina says they packed over 16,800 bags of food for over 400 children. Two years ago, they had close to 500 children every week. “We started this program with 100 children in three elementary schools and now we are in 21 schools.
Over the years the program has become more streamlined. “One of our greatest supporters has been Half-Way Motors. They provide us with a van to transport the food bags each week. We need two volunteer drivers every week. I usually put out an appeal for drivers, and every time I do, people come forward to help. The Kiwanis Club and Half-Way Motors have also helped deliver the food bags.” says Amina.
The success of the Isthmus program is not found in the numbers alone, but in this community’s ability to rise to the challenge. “I have the best volunteers anyone can ask for and I am grateful that I have been given this opportunity to serve a community I call home”, says Amina.
Twenty-six years ago Amina was volunteering at Agnew H. Johnston school, and brought her youngest daughter with her when she volunteered. At the time, it was the only school in Thunder Bay that had a breakfast program. While talking with the other kids, her daughter discovered that, for some, it was the only food they would get for the whole day.
Her daughter then asked her the question, “what are you going to do about it?”
Amina says she has always led by example. “I volunteered everywhere, library, lunch supervisors, and I saw the need. So I thought this is something we can bring to Thunder Bay.”
The organization had just come to Canada, so Amina made the call to see how to get it off the ground.
“I am grateful for how the program supports our future leaders, and we really have to look out for them. And the Thunder Bay community has come out for our kids. Once word got out and people understood what the kids needed, they stepped up.”
Isthmus Canada is a registered charity that provides tax receipts for any donation over $20 dollars. Donations can made online at www.isthmus.ca/donate. Make sure you choose Thunder Bay under the dropdown box - WHERE IT’S NEEDED MOST. Food donations are also accepted, because hunger doesn’t take weekends off.
