Giving Tuesday Donations are Making a Difference

In November 2023, Bishop Susan Bell launched a Giving Tuesday Food Security special appeal in response to the growing need for food security across the diocese. The first appeal in 2023 supported 22 parish food security initiatives, and through the 2024 appeal, grants were made to 10 parishes.

This support was made possible thanks to a generous donation of $10,000 by a Palestinian Canadian, who, in response to the devastation arising from the war in Gaza, was moved to respond locally with this generous act of care and compassion for our neighbours.

Almost 12 per cent of households in the diocese were worried that there wouldn’t be enough to eat, and according to Food Banks Canada, food banks across the country have seen over two million visitors in 2024, with children representing 700,000 of these visits. A report from Feed Ontario shows that food banks in Ontario have seen one million of those visitors.

Forty per cent of food bank users rely on social assistance or disability-related supports, and 18 per cent are currently employed, making this year the highest ever recorded for employed visitors.

“Sadly, the needs facing our neighbours are only growing,” says Bishop Bell in the launch of the appeal. “But our churches are responding in extraordinary ways—being the face and hands of Christ—through the generosity of our parishioners and the communities we serve.”

Responding to this need are parishes like All Saints Lutheran Anglican Church in Guelph, where they host the Silvercreek Community Market. This market has been offering free fresh produce to our local community since 2017. In 2023, they distributed food to 7,191 people and had served 7,368 (2,948 of these are children) at the end of November 2024!

The SCM is located in a community that scores very low in Public Health’s Social Determinants of Health. Many local families experience food insecurity, and market guests are very diverse, including newcomers, Indigenous families, and include food drop-offs at a Guelph Assisted Living building for those with mobility challenges after each Market.

“Families shop once a month (on the first or third Thursday) and we offer refreshments while they wait. It is a choice-based market geared to family size rather than giving everyone a set hamper.” says Michele Altermann, administrative assistant at All Saints.  “There is a lot of chatting and smiles as people wait their turn to shop!”

The Silvercreek Community Market has used their grant in 2023 to purchase fresh, nutritious produce, and they intend to do the same this year. This sees that a variety of nutritious options are available to market guests, including apples, bananas, broccoli, cabbage, carrots, garlic, ginger, kale, lemons, okra, onions, oranges, potatoes, spinach, and eggs. Shoppers get to choose the items they want, and the amount they receive is geared to family size. All families of four plus, get a dozen eggs; smaller families may only get 1/2 dozen. Altermann shares gratitude on behalf of the parish and the market: “Thank you again to the diocese for their support. If you saw how happy people are to be able to receive nutritious, fresh produce, you would know why we have no intention of stopping this program!”

Elizabeth Wensley, deputy rector’s warden at Christ’s Church Cathedral in Hamilton, shared how your support met some of the needs of the Cathedral Café. “Since December 2023, Christ’s Church Cathedral has been a partner—with St. Matthew’s House (SMH) and the Diocese of Niagara—in a city-funded warming centre for people experiencing housing and food insecurity called ‘The Cathedral Café’” says Wensley “Through the café and many other initiatives, the Cathedral has become known as a congregation with a heart for people who don’t have enough material resources to live with dignity. As a result, our clergy and staff often face requests for help from people who can’t make it to the end of the month with enough money for groceries.”

To address the issue, the Cathedral used the food security grant received in December 2023 to buy gift cards for the discount grocery store within walking distance of the church. During the week, The Cathedral Café is able to offer two meals a day and refer guests to longer-term help to skilled St. Matthew’s House staff working in the café. Many emergency requests, however, come on Sunday mornings when the café isn’t open. The gift cards are a way to bridge people for a day or so until St. Matthew’s House social service staff are available again.

St. George’s in Guelph is another parish to use the grant for gift cards. For people who are unhoused and living in encampments, St. George’s found that providing non-perishable items was not helpful, since many of those seeking the support of the parish do not have access to a kitchen or materials to prepare the food. Laura Keller shares, “These gift cards allow for those who are unsheltered to access a hot meal, especially during times where no meal programs are operating, like on Sundays.”

“The gift cards also provide choice and independence to those experiencing hunger. We maintain cards from a variety of restaurants and allow those who ask for them to pick what they would like,” says Keller. “They also get the chance to pick what meals they would like at the restaurant, an opportunity that isn’t always available for those who rely on soup kitchens and meal centres.”

Parishes are truly meeting the needs of their communities in diverse ways. St. Michael’s in Hamilton used their 2023 grant to purchase an outdoor community fridge. The fridge is accompanied by a separate pantry, located in a cheerfully painted shed that says, “Take what you need, leave what you can.” The fridge was opened in August of 2024 and was already a huge success with both donors to the pantry and the neighbours in need. For 2025, St. Michael’s hopes to use their grant to add solar lighting to the area for safety in the evenings, a widened, accessible pathway, and an additional pantry to be used for storage.

Many parishes across the diocese are offering remarkable services like Sunday lunch programs, hygiene and food banks, community lunches and dinners, and meal bag programs. If you would like to support one of these programs, contact your local parish to find out what ministries or programs may be in place in the parish or community.