Guess what you can get from this food bank other than food

Walk through Winnipeg's biggest food bank and you'll probably bump into Jane Moses, Emmanuel Verri and Kerry Weyman.

Each one has received food donations from Winnipeg Harvest. Two of them still do. But one thing they all share in common is that they've gotten more than they first bargained for from the food bank — and they've given back in surprising ways, too.

These are their stories.

Emmanuel Verri immigrated to Winnipeg from the Philippines with his mother, father and sister. When they first arrived, they lived with a cousin in the city. Soon, they felt too dependent on their relatives for food... so they started getting their own from Winnipeg Harvest.

Our first time in a food bank we lined up behind 50 or 60 other families. We were actually the last ones. One by one, families picked up their own food with their own bags.

Being the last in line was actually the best because we got to take all the leftovers home. So we got twice as much as the first people. We got bread, canned goods, some vegetables and eggs for the whole family for the whole week.

It kind of felt weird but it was awesome, especially because we wanted to give back to our cousin who was giving us support.

We used the food bank for about three months. Now we have financial stability and we moved into our own home.

After that we heard that Winnipeg Harvest needs volunteers. They discovered I have computer skills that can help them. It's a really fun experience here.

Kerry Weyman is a single mother of three with schizoaffective disorder. She's been making use of Winnipeg Harvest donations for 20 years.

When my daughter, Rebecca, turned 18 she wanted to help other people who were in the same circumstance as us. She volunteered for three years and then she got a job in volunteer services.

She asked me if I wanted to come and help. Now I work reception. I just really enjoy being here. Harvest has given me confidence and skills I didn't know I had. I get a compliment from somebody every day that I'm here. 

Jane Moses is a refugee from South Sudan who came to Winnipeg with her three-year-old son.

My sponsor told me if you need food you better go to Winnipeg Harvest. Then I asked Winnipeg Harvest if I could volunteer in their office. They said, "Oh yeah, you're an active lady!"

They registered my name and I volunteered for almost a year. At that point I was trying to move out of my sponsor's house so I could be on my own but he said no, you need to wait until you have a job.

I submitted my resume to Winnipeg Harvest and they hired me as a part-time cleaner. I was really happy and emotional. I was crying and crying. I didn't believe I got a job.

When I told my sponsor I was working for Winnipeg Harvest he said my son and I could go live by ourselves. Winnipeg Harvest holds me like my mom. Everyone there is just like my parents. I feel comfortable.