This is the 10th in a series of columns written by staff from the Lighthouse to help the community better understand people experiencing homelessness and those who support them. This column will appear every other Monday.
Walking through the Lighthouse atrium around 11:45 a.m., I look outside to see a group of people lined up to get their bagged lunch. It’s a mix of both familiar and unfamiliar faces.
Calvin comes in to talk to one of the housing workers after picking up his bagged lunch. He has recently moved out of the emergency shelter and into a rented room but is facing some challenges.
He’s been lonely since he moved out, and he doesn’t have enough income to be able to cover rent along with all his basic necessities including food, so he makes use of the food bank and comes for a bagged lunch at the Lighthouse four days per week.
Standing in the lunch line in the Lighthouse’s cafeteria a little later, the man in front of me strikes up a conversation. He’s been staying at the emergency shelter for a couple of weeks, and as he looks for housing, he is also seeing improvements in his health.
“I’m starting to gain weight,” he says with a smile. “The food here is so good, and they make sure I have enough to eat, even with my food allergies.”
Imagine you missed lunch one day and it makes you hungry. Now imagine you missed two full days of food. Your body is beyond hungry, which makes you exhausted, irritable, and light-headed. Throw in the fact you are unhoused. You’re focused on your immediate needs.
It’s hard to imagine, because most of us have, thankfully, never experienced food insecurity or being unhoused for a significant length of time.
Food insecurity affects many individuals in our community, especially people who are at risk of or who are experiencing homelessness. When you don’t have anywhere to live and you have to constantly be thinking about survival, it can be difficult to access the basic necessities. Some people choose to pay their rent over buying groceries. It’s not a choice anyone should ever have to make.
At the Lighthouse, we prioritize all aspects of an individual’s well-being. We want to see people become housed, and we want them to be able to maintain housing. Our food service is all part of this process. We understand the necessity of healthy food to help maintain mental and physical health.
The Lighthouse kitchen is a busy place. We served more than 70,000 meals in 2022, thanks to a kitchen team that includes four staff members and more than 30 volunteers. This includes a community bagged lunch program as well as three meals and two snacks each day for our emergency shelter participants. So far this year, from January to August, we have already served almost 55,000 meals.
The Lighthouse serves a bagged lunch for community members on weekdays. We have been offering it four days per week but are thrilled to be able to increase it to five days per week beginning today, Sept. 11.
The bagged lunch program runs from 11:30 a.m. 12 p.m. Monday to Friday. Each day, we serve 50 to 60 people on a first-come, first-served basis, including individuals and families. Anyone who is experiencing food insecurity is welcome to a meal — from people living on the street to those who are couch surfing or living in an apartment.
What’s included in a bagged lunch? We offer a sandwich, juice box, snack, granola bar and fruit. Other organizations in the community offer meals that provide a Wednesday lunch at St. James’ Anglican Church, Friday supper by the Salvation Army food truck, and Sunday breakfast at St. James’ Anglican Church. Working alongside community partners, we want to ensure everyone has something to eat.
The kitchen also provides nutritious meals and snacks for all 58 individuals (youth and adults) who are staying at the emergency shelter. Meals follow Canada’s Food Guide to meet or exceed all nutrition guidelines, and we work to provide meals that meet any dietary requirements people have.
Including the bagged lunch program, shelter meals and snacks, volunteer and staff meals, the Lighthouse serves up to 400 meals per day.
We all know food costs are increasing, and the Lighthouse has felt the effects of this throughout the last year. We are blessed to receive food donations from a variety of sources, including community members, churches, Hewitt’s Farms, Mariposa Market, COBS Bread, Georgian Bay Meats, funeral homes, the Sharing Place Food Centre, and Salvation Army to name a few.
How can you help? Any food served at the Lighthouse must be prepared in a certified kitchen. It is paramount to comply with health unit regulations to ensure food safety and wellness. If you have prepared meals from a certified commercial kitchen, you are welcome to drop them off at the Lighthouse. If you are interested in sponsoring a meal, reach out to our food service team at [email protected] or call 705-329-2265, ext. 117.
For more information about the Lighthouse, contact executive director Linda Goodall at [email protected].
