As the holiday season inches ever closer, CBC Hamilton hopes you’ll keep those who are less fortunate in mind this year.

The choir from W H Ballard public school stops by our studio to sing a few carols, and reporter Samantha Craggs talks with food share volunteers and officials about the need for food banks in Hamilton.

And that need is great. The Ontario Association of Food Banks (OAFB) said in its hunger count report that 374,698 people used food banks in March 2014 alone. Of that total, 131,144 are children, accounting for 35 per cent of all people who accessed food banks.

Province-wide, 17,182 households accessed food banks for the first time in March 2014, according to the OAFB report. That represents a 20 per cent increase from 2013, when 14,026 households accessed food banks for the first time.

Help us support our local food banks all month. A food bin will be in CBC Hamilton, 118 James St. N to collect food donations for Hamilton Food Share. Telephone, online and on-site food donation will be accepted until Dec. 31, 2014. Every donation counts.

Ready to donate now? Call the Sounds of the Season Hotline at 1-855-768-7222 (1-855-SOTS-CBC) or click here to donate online.