Brighten Your Day

This Cab Driver Has Been Delivering Groceries To Seniors For 15 Years

July 13, 2021

A Checker Cabs driver in Calgary has been delivering groceries to the elderly every weekend for the past 15 years.

Iqbal Alimohd / Credit: Checker Cabs

Iqbal Alimohd, 69, spends every Saturday with his family serving his community.

He says it started with a few regular clients.

"With time going by, I see they're not doing good," he told the Calgary Eyeopener. "And then I told them, 'From now on, I buy your groceries, because you [don't have] much energy left'."

The operation now serves 20 to 25 people.

Every Saturday, he arrives at Real Canadian Superstore before it opens, ready to buy and deliver groceries for dozens of seniors.

His wife Mumtaz takes phone orders during the week and tracks them in a spreadsheet. Their sons, Faisal and Yasin, started helping with grocery runs during the pandemic.

The day isn't done until 7 p.m. most weeks, but the time is something they give for free.

"It was such a big commitment that whenever we would want to travel or go anywhere, he would be like, 'Well, what are my seniors going to do on Saturday?'" recalled Faisal.

But it's more than just groceries.

"I think the rest of it is so much more impactful," Yasin said. "He becomes part of their family."

Iqbal spends hours socializing with the seniors, driving them to appointments and doing anything else he can to help. It's always been something he kept quiet.

Faisal said they didn't realize how much was involved beyond buying and delivering groceries until they would hear from seniors or their children or get thank-you notes.

Sometimes, he says, there are children of seniors who tell him, "Your dad's been there when we haven't been able to be there."

Listen to the full interview here.