Community Kitchen a place for food, fellowship

The St. Vincent de Paul Community Kitchen in Simcoe offers more than just meals to those in need.

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As the new name suggests, the former Soup Kitchen, which has moved to a new home at Trinity Anglican Church, also feeds visitors’ needs for fellowship.

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“Not only do we serve more than soup, the kitchen has become more of a gathering place where people can socialize,” said Joan Pringle, president of the local branch of St. Vincent de Paul.

The kitchen was established in 1985 by Jack Wellhauser, Herb Smith, Lois Craig and other volunteers during what a Simcoe Reformer story at the time said was a “poor economy.”

Thirty-eight years later, that need continues.

Volunteers served 5,819 meals at the kitchen in 2022.

In 2021-2022, in the midst of the pandemic, they were serving an average of 92 meals a day.

The Knights of Columbus had been providing a hall for the service but when the club sold the building in the spring, the Community Kitchen needed a new home.

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Rev. Paul Sherwood welcomed them into the Trinity Anglican at 80 Colborne St. South, just a short distance from the former location.

The Community Kitchen’s new season, which runs from October to April, will resume on Oct. 12. Healthy three-course, sit-down meals will be served on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from noon to 1 pm

Pringle said there are a mix of people using the service, including the elderly and those with mental health and physical challenges, many of them living in the downtown core.

“We call them ‘our neighbors in need,’” Pringle said. “The kitchen provides a sense of family for those who don’t have one. The regulars will help set up. They care about the people who are serving and those they’re sitting with.”

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St. Vincent de Paul Simcoe/Wateford/Delhi has been in operation since 1958. It’s the only agency in the Norfolk area that regularly delivers groceries to those in need. A total of 1,190 families, including 2,917 children and adults, were helped in 2022.

“With the high cost of food right now, our emergency food delivery has doubled,” said Pringle. “In the past we had more couples and individuals in need. Now there are a lot more families with children. Parents are telling us they can’t afford school snacks.”

A large percentage of the funds to operate the food programs are donated by the parishioners of St. Mary’s in Simcoe, St. Bernard’s in Waterford and Our Lady Queen of Martyrs in Delhi.

Individuals, organizations, other churches, charities, farms, stores and other businesses provide food and financial assistance or gifts in kind. Drives at local Catholic schools bring in thousands of cans of food every year.

Those who would like to make a donation and those in need of food can call 1-855-561-4184.

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