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Speaker 1: The cost of living. It's having a massive impact on

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Speaker 1: so many around the Northern Territory at the moment, and

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Speaker 1: I've no doubt that the services of food Bank have

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Speaker 1: well and truly been required. Now joining me on the

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Speaker 1: line is Peter Chandler, the Food Bank executive officer here

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Speaker 1: in the territory. Good morning to you, Peter.

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Speaker 2: Good morning Katie. How are you doing that?

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Speaker 1: Not too bad, Peter, I know it's been it's been

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Speaker 1: pretty tough for a lot of people when it comes

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Speaker 1: to the cost of living at the moment. Petrol prices

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Speaker 1: well and truly on the rise. The cost of food

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Speaker 1: seems to be absolutely astronomical. What impact is that having

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Speaker 1: on you, guys.

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Speaker 2: Katie has been massive and it's kind of it started

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Speaker 2: with COVID and of course we had a lot of

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Speaker 2: people we termed the working poor that come in that

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Speaker 2: you had their hours cut and so forth, and we

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Speaker 2: really haven't seen it fall back since that time. In fact,

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Speaker 2: in recent days with even more people come in, particularly

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Speaker 2: on our Saturday mornings now that we've got the warehouse opened,

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Speaker 2: and you know, there can be as much as a

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Speaker 2: ton and a half of food that goes out of

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Speaker 2: the warehouse of a Saturday morning just to help people

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Speaker 2: out and it is just you know, it's affecting everyone.

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Speaker 2: And you know, I put my hat off to you

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Speaker 2: in particular, particularly one four point nine. How you guys

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Speaker 2: help us around Christmas, that's amazing. But food bank needs

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Speaker 2: help all year because people are hungry all year.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, there is no doubt about that. And as you've

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Speaker 1: touched on, you know people that are working that are

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Speaker 1: trying their best to put food on the table, but

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Speaker 1: it is it's hard. Peter. Has there been a big

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Speaker 1: sort of boost in the demand for food bank services

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Speaker 1: over recent months, Yeah, there has.

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Speaker 2: Been, Katie, and not only just in the general community,

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Speaker 2: but our indigenous communities have reached out for help. You

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Speaker 2: sending food down to what I recently. All of those

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Speaker 2: things have an impact on the food that we have

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Speaker 2: in our warehouse. And you know, on the back of

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Speaker 2: COVID then we have the transport issues. We're only now

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Speaker 2: seeing good supplies of food coming back into our warehouse

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Speaker 2: from South Australia. But it really has had an impact

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Speaker 2: impact on what we can do. And the sad thing

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Speaker 2: is that food Bank, as I said, it needs help

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Speaker 2: all year round. And one of the hardest things to

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Speaker 2: do in this gig is to reach out and ask

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Speaker 2: for help. And you know, if territories want to help

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Speaker 2: us to help others, I can only do that by

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Speaker 2: asking for their support, and you know through yourself in

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Speaker 2: your radio station putting out a request for people to

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Speaker 2: help us help territories.

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Speaker 1: So is that what you need right now? I know

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Speaker 1: that you have a lot on at different times when

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Speaker 1: it comes to those fundraising drives and when it comes

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Speaker 1: to you know, to trying to get that food on

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Speaker 1: the plates of those who need it. But is that

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Speaker 1: what you need at the moment? Peter?

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Speaker 2: Absolutely, because look we not everything in our warehouse is

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Speaker 2: donated food. Quite often we need to buy food in

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Speaker 2: so having those cash resources really helps us do what

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Speaker 2: we do. We can get access to food at very

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Speaker 2: cheap prices through Food Bank Australia, getting it shipped up here,

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Speaker 2: we buy it locally through met cash and others. But

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Speaker 2: the reality is you need the funds to be able

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Speaker 2: to do that. So if Territorians can help us, we

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Speaker 2: can help more territorians. So what have you got on.

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Speaker 1: At the moment in terms of that fundraising and you

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Speaker 1: really trying to get as much as you can.

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Speaker 2: We're even singing for our sup Okay. We have a

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Speaker 2: small group that go around and we will sing a

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Speaker 2: few tunes for people, and we'll even shut up if

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Speaker 2: people will pay us. But we'll do anything. We've got

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Speaker 2: a golf day coming up, Corporate Golf DAYE and that's

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Speaker 2: the Public Service Corporate Golf Day, which is at the

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Speaker 2: DA and Golf Club on Friday the tenth. That's an

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Speaker 2: amazing event for us. Our first one was last year

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Speaker 2: and I think this will be bigger and better this year.

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Speaker 2: Those kind of events that take a lot of work.

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Speaker 2: People like Paul Wyatt who just they work their rings

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Speaker 2: off and putting these events together. You know what it's

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Speaker 2: like in that events and fundraising area. But they work

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Speaker 2: their rings off. But every dollar counts because we can

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Speaker 2: turn that into real meals to feed it a hungry

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Speaker 2: child or a mum and a dad who are struggling

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Speaker 2: at the moment. That's the part that I love so

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Speaker 2: much about this job. But I can't do it without

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Speaker 2: other people helping us.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, do you have any idea at the moment sort

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Speaker 1: of you know how many people you are helping a week,

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Speaker 1: or how many meals you're providing at the moment, Peter.

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Speaker 2: Anywhere between forty five and fifty thousand meals a month

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Speaker 2: agoing out of the warehouse. Now don't have the latest figures,

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Speaker 2: but since we've been opening Saturday mornings, as I said,

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Speaker 2: we can see you know, a ton and a half

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Speaker 2: a thood going out just of a Saturday morning in

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Speaker 2: a few hours that we open. And to be honest,

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Speaker 2: I think we're only scratching the surface. And what worries

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Speaker 2: me significantly is what's to come with interest rates going up,

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Speaker 2: with a price of food, fuel, all those things that

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Speaker 2: transport costs go up, food needs to go up. All

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Speaker 2: of those things happen, and you know, the thing is

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Speaker 2: that wages don't go up and people are less struggling.

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Speaker 2: And that's look. Food bank is there as the last resort,

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Speaker 2: I suppose. But at the end of the day, how

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Speaker 2: many people can we help? And without the resources, you know,

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Speaker 2: it's near impossible to help everyone.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, Peter, Now, if there is somebody listening this morning

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Speaker 1: who's thinking to themselves, you know, I've wound up in

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Speaker 1: a really tough spot. I need a bit of a

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Speaker 1: hand up. Firstly, how can they get in contact or

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Speaker 1: how can they come and see food bank in that instance.

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Speaker 2: Well, look they can call anytime. Our number is eight

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Speaker 2: nine four seven three double six ' nine. Our warehouses

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Speaker 2: at nine mil Road at in Berrima. And of course

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Speaker 2: we've got our food to Life program that operates in

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Speaker 2: daw in Palmerston. How it Springs company do and we

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Speaker 2: go down as far as Bachelor. Look we've got a

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Speaker 2: truck that goes down to Katherine every month, we go

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Speaker 2: out to Jabaru. We send food most places across the

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Speaker 2: Northern Territory and you know it's a big job, but

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Speaker 2: I think we're still only scratching the surface and what's

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Speaker 2: to come. You know, who knows we're just again we

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Speaker 2: put out our request for those and being blunt, we're

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Speaker 2: only one charity. There's heaps of good causes out there.

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Speaker 2: Everyone is asking for help. It's not an easy thing

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Speaker 2: to do, and particularly when we know territory into struggling

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Speaker 2: and you know what the business world ain't do on

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Speaker 2: that well either. So we're asking those people that are

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Speaker 2: also struggling to give us a hand and that's a

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Speaker 2: hard ask sometimes.

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Speaker 1: But Peter, if there is somebody out there listening this morning,

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Speaker 1: who's thinking to themselves do you know what I'm going

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Speaker 1: all right at the moment, I actually can afford to

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Speaker 1: make a donation, or I can afford to drop some

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Speaker 1: food off. How can they do that?

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Speaker 2: Well, if they can drop the food off to nine

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Speaker 2: mil road Erema, that would be excellent. If they've got

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Speaker 2: a little bit of extra cash, they can either again

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Speaker 2: ring that number that I just quoted, or they can

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Speaker 2: go onto our website. If they go on the website,

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Speaker 2: now I would really ask them. Up the very top,

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Speaker 2: there's a little area that talks about the NT versus

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Speaker 2: South Australia Victoria. You must click on the NT because

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Speaker 2: I hate to think the Territorian's money goes to Victoria

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Speaker 2: or New South Wales, not the food. Thanks down there

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Speaker 2: don't do a tremendous job, but let's keep territorians money

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Speaker 2: in the territory.

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Speaker 1: I one hundred percent agree with that. Peter Chandler, it

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Speaker 1: is always great to speak with you. I know that

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Speaker 1: you guys are working incredibly hard, and quite frankly, we

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Speaker 1: just don't hear people say on the radio enough that

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Speaker 1: you're working your rings off, but we know that you are, mate.

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Speaker 1: We know you're working incredibly hard, and I love that honesty.

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Speaker 1: So thank you so much for having a chat with

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Speaker 1: us this morning.

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Speaker 2: Thanks Katie, and again thank you to you unto one

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Speaker 2: oh four point nine. You guys do an excellent job.

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Speaker 1: Thank you anytime.

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Speaker 2: Thank you.

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Speaker 1: That is pettere Chandler there, the chief executive of Food

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Speaker 1: Bank here in the Northern Territory. They work so bloody hard,

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Speaker 1: there is no doubt about that, and they do so

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Speaker 1: much to help Territorians with a hand up when they

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Speaker 1: really need it. So if you are able to make

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Speaker 1: a donation, if you are able to make a food donation,

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Speaker 1: or if you're out there listening and you do need

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Speaker 1: a hand up, they are a great bunch of people

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Speaker 1: out there at food Bank and are always happy to

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Speaker 1: help Territorians in need.