The Interfaith Caring Kitchen plans to get back to serving a sit-down Christmas meal after two years of providing a free meal as take-out only during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Noting 2019 the last time the Christmas dinner was dine-in, Interfaith Caring Kitchen coordinator Shawn Christensen, said, “This will be our first attempt to invite people to sit and stay and socialize this then.
“That’s what our guests have been asking us, saying, ‘When can we come back in and sit down (for the meal)?’” she added.
Christensen said some people have told her they don’t just attend the Christmas meal for the food, they come to enjoy companionship and to see people.
“You don’t really get a lot of that standing in line, getting a meal and going,” she said.
The free meal is being provided on Dec. 7 at the Spirit and Life Centre, 180 Wellington St. W. with the doors opening at 4:30 pm
Thanks to a generous donation from TekSavvy, there will be a roast dinner served that will include mash potatoes and gravy, sweet potatoes, vegetables and dessert, Christensen said. The meal will be served in take-out containers to provide that option to guests, she added.
Volunteers from TekSavvy also take part in preparing and serving the dinner.
Christensen said the CK Muslim Association also supports the dinner financially and with volunteers.
She said the Interfaith Caring Kitchen is a partnership of volunteers from the local Muslim, Catholic and Christian communities that has been going strong coming up on 13 years.
The Interfaith Kitchen was only shutdown for four months during the pandemic, reopening in October 2020 and has continued then serving meals between 120 and 125 meals, the first and third Wednesday of every month out of St. Ursula’s Catholic Church hall, she added.
“It’s just a good thing all around,” Christensen said of the partnership. “There are some really fantastic people doing good work out there in the community.”