Here’s a great story that wonderfully illustrates and reminds us that airports aren’t just places to fly in and out from.

Each airport also plays many roles in the local community.

Some airports collect loose change from travelers and send it along to local charities. Others organize programs that collect perfectly good unsold packaged food items from airport vendors and pass them along to local food banks.

And since 1997 Canada’s Winnipeg Richardson International Airport (YWG) has been hosting a Harvest Garden that grows thousands of pounds of vegetables each year for local food banks.

And the airport just shared that last week more than 5,000 pounds of potatoes, beets, carrots, and onions were pulled from the airport’s Harvest Garden and donated to Harvest Manitoba. The non-profit sends the vegetables out to 325 food banks and agencies in the province.

Pretty impressive, right?

More impressive, since the Harvest Garden started in 1997, the airport has donated 72,270 pounds of vegetables. That’s enough food to help provide a meal to 100,000 families in need.

According to the Winnipeg Airports Authority, which operates YWG, over the past 25 years, the airport garden has grown from a few rows in size to 4,000 square feet. And employees from nearly every department across the organization pitch in each summer to help seed, weed, and harvest the garden.

Have a great community story to share about your airport? Let us know.

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