“This is the most important day of the year at the level of food collection”. Christian Tilhac, head of the Restos du Cœur d’Anglet centre, like all the association’s volunteers, is on the go. Smiling and affable despite the challenge of this day of Saturday, March 5. The Day of the great national fundraising.
The one that makes it possible to provide aid to 312 beneficiary familiesfrom Biarritz to Saint-Pierre-d’Irube, via Bayonne and Boucau. “It makes us live in the center of Anglet, like all the centers of Restos de France.” Last year, its teams collected 18 tonnes of aid, a record, despite the Covid-19 pandemic. The center of Saint-Jean-de-Luz had to recover 12 tons against 15 tons in 2020. If the six centers of the Basque Country were once again able to bring together the number of volunteers necessary to collect donations in front of around thirty supermarkets , they still do not know what the consequences of high inflation in France and parallel collections for Ukrainian refugees will be.
“We integrate aid for people who will come from Ukraine”
Initiatives of associations or municipalities, collections for refugees fleeing Ukraine at war are increasing in the Basque Country. The situation has moved many Basques who responded to calls. We can therefore wonder if this surge of generosity will not have an impact on the parallel collection of Restos. “We are going a bit towards the unknown, we don’t really know what it is likely to give”acknowledges Christian Tilhac.
Corn donations to Ukraine and those to the association founded by Coluche are neither contradictory nor competingreminds the volunteer: “It’s complementary. It’s even the general idea of Restos du Cœur, the doors are open, we welcome people without knowing if they come from Ukraine, if they come from the house next door. We’re here for everyone.” The national president of the association also sent an email this Friday morning to all the centers. “We have instructions to include in our collection the fact that we will have to help people who will come from Ukraine, who will be in need. I received an email this morning telling me ‘don’t hesitate to talk about Ukraine when collecting in supermarkets’“.
The price increase could weigh
Another difficulty for the Restos du Cœur centers this year, galloping inflation: rising prices of raw materials, food, energy, fuel… And there again, the war in Ukraine and the economic measures taken against and by Russia do not help matters. “I think it will have an impact, cautiously advances Christian Tilhac. But I’m still not sure about that.” It is based on the first returns of donations collected this Friday, March 4, on the first of the two days of the collection. “People are staying generous and that’s super important, it’s super nice to see that everyone is putting in a lot.”
A first impression confirmed by other center managers. “It works quite well”, believes Isabelle Labbat, the co-host of the Ayherre center which covers the central part of the Basque Country (Country of Hasparren, Nive-Adour, Baïgura-Mondarrain). Last year, his team collected three tonnes of food from three supermarkets.
Same opinion on the side of Saint-Palais which this year mobilized around forty volunteers to collect. On the other hand, in Mauléon, a volunteer admits that the first day was complicated. The collection of this Friday, March 4 only reached half of the donations of the past year at the same time. In 2021, the Souletin centre, which collects food in front of two supermarkets, had collected 1.5 tonnes of food over the two days of the collection.
Volunteers on the go
One certainty, however, and a satisfaction, for all the Basque centers of Restos: the volunteers are there. In Saint-Jean-de-Luz, however, 40 were missing at the start of the week to ensure its collection in ten supermarkets from Bidart to Hendaye. Good intentions finally showed up, in particular 21 students from Saint-Thomas-d’Acquin high school. That of Chantaco, which mobilized its high school students for its open day, promised to take the opportunity to collect food on its side for the benefit of the Luzien center. In Ayherre, for the first time, fifteen one-day volunteers were able to be “recruited” to help with the collection on three large surfaces and lend a hand to the twenty “regular”.
Same relief in Anglet, where the teams mobilized at the twelve collection points were able to be completed at the end of the week. “It still takes a lot of time, a lot of energy to bring everyone together.” And it hasn’t been easy.
The Covid-19 has been there, explains Christian Tilhac : “We traditionally had volunteers who came to us, in particular from biker associations in Bayonne. Unfortunately, these associations closed their doors because of the pandemic, so we have fewer staff. We still have a lot of students who came to lend a hand.” The Angloy center manages 120 volunteers this Saturday to collect from 12 shops, to which are added around forty people at the center to sort and store the goods collected.
Where are the collections made?
About thirty are organized in the Basque Country (we were unable to reach the center of Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port, the list of collections is therefore not completely exhaustive, editor’s note).
On the Basque coast
- Anglet: Leclerc BAB and Busquet, Carrefour BAB 2, Lidl, Metro
- Bayonne: Leclerc Bayonne North, Intermarché Grand Basque, Lidl, Carrefour Market Marracq
- Biarritz: Leclerc Iraty
- Bidart: Intermarché and Lidl
- Saint-Pierre-d’Irube: Carrefour Ametzondo, Carrefour Market
- Saint-Jean-de-Luz: Carrefour Jalday, Carrefour Market and Lidl
- Urrugne: Leclerc, Lidl Socoa
- Hendaye: Carrefour, Intermarché and Lidl
- Ustaritz: Super U
Nive-Adour, Hasparren and Baïgura-Mondarrain
- Hasparren: Intermarché
- Itxassou: Intermarché
- Urt: Carrefour Market
Around Saint-Palais
- Aicirits: Leclerc
- Amendeuix Oneix: Carrefour Market and Aldi
In Soulé
- Cherute: Intermarché
- Mauleon: Lidl