Seeing a need, Grunthal opens soup kitchen

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This article was published 27/02/2024 (446 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Seeing a greater need in the community, volunteers from Grunthal have opened the Share a Bowl Soup Kitchen.

The monthly soup kitchen will serve those in the community who need it and will run congruently with the Caring Hands Food Bank. There are about 60 families that use the food bank and soup kitchen spokesperson Doris Wiens said those that use the food bank might be patrons of the soup kitchen as well.

“For the past decade the Caring Hands Food Bank has done incredible work providing food hampers to many community members and starting a soup kitchen felt like the natural next step in supporting our community.”

The soup kitchen runs out of the basement of the Elim Mennonite Church. It runs from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. It’s inaugural day was Feb. 14. It’s next day of operation will be March 13.

“Everyone has been affected by inflation, rising food prices, and also isolation during the pandemic, which has highlighted the need for more opportunities to connect with other people. It’s tough times these days for a lot of people,” said Wiens.

As a teacher, she said she has seen hunger firsthand. She said the rise in in food prices and the need for a food bank shows that there is a need for a soup kitchen as well.

Although the soup kitchen runs once a month for now, Wiens said they might increase the frequency depending on need and the amount of volunteers that they have. They currently have about 14 volunteers. Funding for the soup kitchen is provided by local businesses who have donated $2,000 so far.

Moving forward, Wiens said the soup kitchen hopes to open the space up to people who want to learn how to cook or who want to learn new recipes.

“We’re doing this to create a friendly environment where everyone feels welcomed and supported. We’re hoping that people who want to use it will also come and maybe learn some new skills or just have the camaraderie of cooking with other people and participating in the entire day. Maybe it’s not cooking, maybe it’s meeting other people and mingling. There’s lots of duties that are available.”

Anyone interested in donating or becoming a volunteer can email grunthalsoupkitchen@gmail.com.