Calgary Food Bank volunteer retires after 42 years

Terry Deets walked into the Calgary Food Bank in the 1980s after spotting a volunteer ad in the newspaper. He stayed for 42 years.

On Wednesday, staff, volunteers, friends, and family gathered to celebrate his retirement — a moment that feels overdue and too soon all at once. Deets earned the title "Honorary Mayor" of the food bank, a name that stuck because everyone who's passed through those doors over four decades has crossed paths with him.

He arrived each day with a joke, a smile, and a Tim Hortons coffee. He asked about people's lives. He talked about the Stampeders and the Flames. He worked steadily, got the job done, and made thousands of volunteers and visitors feel like they belonged somewhere.

"They broke the mould with Terry," said Melissa From, the food bank's president and CEO. "There isn't a person who's passed through the doors in 42 years who hasn't — in one way, shape or form — interacted with or been impacted by Terry."

Deets retires as the food bank faces mounting demand. More than 60 per cent of its workforce consists of volunteers like him — essential at a time when food insecurity continues to rise across the city. His retirement marks the loss of an institution.

To honour his legacy, the Calgary Food Bank has launched "Terry's Campaign: Honouring 42 Years of Heart," aimed at raising $15,000 to support Calgarians in need.

Some people don't just volunteer. They become part of how a place works.