Supporting Whitecourt’s needy with a friendly smile and a generous bag of groceries

The parking lot at Family Dental Health Whitecourt has been busy after hours on Mondays for several months. Starting at 5 pm, the owners, their children, and staff members at the popular downtown dentist office have been handing out grocery bags to those in need. Dr. Harp Rakhra and his wife Dr. Dana have supported Tennille’s Hope for years. When the pandemic forced the kitchen to shut its doors, the dentist-duo saw an opportunity to help.

From a very early age, both Dr. Harp and Dr. Dana saw how important it was to be stewards of their community. As a Sikh growing up in the temple, Dr. Harp saw how impactful and essential a community kitchen was. “Inside Gurdwara’s (temple), doors are open to everyone, and anyone hungry can go in for a meal. It’s like a communal kitchen. People bring all the groceries, and big meals are cooked in huge, massive pots. They can feed hundreds or even thousands of people,” he explained.

Though his wife grew up with different experiences as an Orthodox Christian, she has the same way of thinking when it comes to helping others. “Yes, religion is part of it. They taught me these things, but my wife is not a Sikh, and she has learned the same thing. She’s way more generous than I am! She’s generous in every single way,” he proudly stated.

His good friend in Edmonton, Mr. Manjit Nerval, started an organization, with Dr. Harp’s help, called Sikhs for Humanity to help the needy. “For the last five years, he would organize food for homeless people. At 11 am, right outside Hope Mission in downtown Edmonton, he put up a big tent. They would start cooking the food at 6 am that morning, bring it there, and distribute it. We were having issues making the food at the temples, so he came up with the idea of building a soup kitchen, and he did. It’s on 97th Street.”

Dr. Harp’s experiences helping with Sikhs for Humanity eventually led him to hand out groceries in Whitecourt. “While we were doing all that, COVID started. Because of that, we were not able to hand people food. Mr. Nerval came up with the idea of packing up groceries and having people drive up, and we would put bags of groceries in their car. Without any contact. We started that sometime in February, and I just really loved that. Every Friday, we would go and pack up to six thousand pounds of groceries in Sherwood Park. I’m a very small part of it, but I am there every Friday with my entire family, including my kids, and we pack bags that are 10-15 pounds per bag. Big bags. We pack about 600 bags. There are times we pack 900 bags. You cannot imagine the number of people that come,” said Dr. Harp.

As these pandemic-led changes took place, Dr. Dana mentioned that Whitecourt was also suffering and that Tennille’s Hope was closed. “She said, let’s do something through the soup kitchen.” Always preferring to remain silent supporters and not have attention on themselves, the Rakhra’s began handing out groceries under the veil of Tennille’s Hope. “It gives us pleasure. I don’t need to show it to anyone because, in the end, it’s my happiness and my family’s happiness, and I want to give these values to my kids. That’s important,” smiled Dr. Harp.

“Why we do this is because we feel that it is the best way to give back to the community and help people that are going through tough times. This community has been amazing to us. We came here 16 years ago, and this is home for us. Everybody has been so good to us, and this is our way of giving back.”

Since Whitecourt has a different demographic than Edmonton, they have altered what they provide in the bags to suit it better. “We include things like milk, eggs and meat. We don’t do that in Edmonton. There it is all vegetarian stuff, but here it’s a very young community with lots of kids.” Each bag also includes various vegetables and bread or pasta.

Each Monday, Dr. Harp, Dr. Dana, their children, and staff members line up outside the Family Dental Health office and pack at least 40 bags of groceries. Once the clock strikes five, community members enter the parking lot and form a line. Larger families can receive more and some help by delivering bags to people in need who cannot travel out. The community effort all around is just beautiful to see.

Back on day one, Dr. Harp said he wasn’t sure how many people would pop by. “I think the first time we did it, we got 40 of everything, and it just so happened that we were not left with anything. It makes you feel so good.” As they feed hungry bellies, the volunteers feed their souls. “We are human beings, and we are supposed to help each other out. It’s crucial to give back to the community that you are part of.”

Everyone has their ups and downs, and as the community has proven time and time again, people here step up when there is a need. “If I can help even one soul, I’ll consider myself a very lucky and successful person. Whenever anyone needs help, if I’m able to help them, I’ll be the first person to raise my hand. Same with Dr. Dana. She will do the same thing. She would raise her hand before me. That’s how she is.”

The Family Dental Health owners plan to continue the Monday grocery event through the summer and likely into the fall. “When winter comes, it gets difficult. But then we will stay part of Tennille’s Hope as we have been in the past.” He graciously thanked several people who regularly support the endeavour, including Doug at IGA. “He tries to help us out in lots of ways. Wanda at Tennille’s is amazing, and Ken Podgurney always goes and picks up everything from IGA. Also, Natasha, Francine and Dolly from the office are always there. Big shout out to all of them.”

Every Monday at 5 pm, the volunteers will be out front at Family Dental Health (5023 50 Avenue), ready with a friendly smile to place a grocery bag in the hands of those who need it.