As Thanksgiving quickly approaches, the Barrie Food Bank is hoping people will keep them in mind.

The food bank is trying to fill their empty shelves and believe the power of the paper bag will help them do it.

Beginning on Thursday, 53,000 bags will be available in the Barrie Advance, marking the start of the Thanksgiving Food Drive. The goal this year is to collect 150,000 pounds of food by the end of October.

"It’s a great reminder for people. It puts that thought back into people heads, ‘hey, you know what? I really need to go and make that donation to the Barrie Food Bank," says Peter Sundborg, executive director of the Barrie Food Bank.

This is the time of year when the shelves are at their emptiest, making this one of the most important food drives to build off of.

"This one is the first one since Easter, so we've gone a long time without replenishing the shelves. During the summer months we don't get the donations we would normally receive in the fall."

Erin Hatton knows just how important this food is. She's about to fill a pantry in a Redwood Park Community Home.

"I’ve been there sometimes when clients come in and just the look on their faces when they open the cupboards and they see there's food there. They just have a sense that someone knows them and some cares about them individually."

The food will help feed the roughly 33,000 people who use the food bank, including clients of Redwood Park.