The Rivermen are stocking shelves at Raphael House every week
Langley's Junior A hockey team has committed to a weekly volunteer shift at Raphael House, the Douglas Crescent food hub that supports more than 400 Langley families a week. Here's what Raphael House does and how to help or get help.
Hockey players are good at lifting heavy things. Raphael House, the family food hub on Douglas Crescent in Langley City, announced on October 30 that the Langley Rivermen have committed to helping every week with distributing food and clothing to the families it serves. That’s a standing weekly shift for the whole hockey season.
What Raphael House is
It started in a school gym. When the pandemic closed Langley schools in March 2020 and families lost breakfast programs and weekend food bags, staff at Douglas Park Elementary and the non-profit Sources set up a mobile food bank in the gym, twice a week, from July 2020. It outgrew the gym, moved to Douglas Recreation Centre, and in July 2021 opened a permanent home at 20471 Douglas Crescent, next to the Alano Club near Douglas Park. It has been a registered charity since October 2022, and this October it marked five years with a fundraising dinner that helped push its fall total past $630,000.
The numbers on its own site: more than 400 families a week come through the Food Hub, families from 65-plus countries, and more than 150 volunteers run it. Many families who were helped come back later to volunteer.
How the Food Hub works
- It’s for families living in Langley or School District 35 with a child under 18. You register first; drop-ins aren’t how it works.
- Each family gets an assigned weekly pick-up slot, confirmed monthly. Current pick-up hours are Tuesday 12:30 to 1:30 pm, Wednesday 10 am to 1 pm and Thursday 5 to 6:30 pm.
- The groceries are a weekly mix of fresh produce, pantry staples, dairy and household basics.
- Miss two weeks without a word and a family can lose its spot, so a quick message ahead of time matters. Eligibility ends when a family moves out of Langley or the youngest child finishes high school.
To register, use the contact details on the Food Hub page. The office is open weekdays 8 am to 4 pm.
If you’d rather be on the Rivermen’s side of the table
Raphael House lists three volunteer jobs right now: food recovery (moving donated food and supplies for the weekly distribution), Food Hub shifts (sorting, welcoming families, keeping the line moving; training provided) and running or helping with weekly family programs. Weekly or occasional both count. The sign-up form is on its site, and donations go through the same site. Businesses, farms and churches can also sign on as partners.
Game nights are the other way to back the team: the Rivermen’s Kids Club is ten home games for $75 a child.