Last spring, the Church of the Apostles initiated a relief program in response to the growing food insecurity during the pandemic.
The initiative, Kitchen Bees, began with family members and people quarantining together taking turns in the shared space to cook meals which would later be distributed to The Bench, Lakeside HOPE House, Guelph Neighbourhood Support Coalition and Royal City Mission.
As the need for food grew, so did the team, which now consists of community members across the city ready to devote their time and energy to cook and deliver meals to those in need.
The team aims to make 125 hearty meals a week which include sandwiches and frozen soups made with fresh produce and a variety of fresh meat till at least the end of this year.
And to do this, they need funds. The program launched a crowd fund on Indiegogo to raise $2,000 which will help cover costs associated with the program.
“I think that we've become pretty vital to the community,” said the Kitchen Bees' Alex Mimacho.
Mimacho said the $2,000 will help pay for ingredients, running the facility, storage containers and more.
“All those costs add up,” said Mimacho.
“I know numbers are rising unfortunately and more and more and more people have been coming to services like ours.”
Those interested in volunteering are asked to email [email protected] with the subject 'KITCHEN BEES VOLUNTEERING.'
Mimacho said when she joined the role as project facilitator in January this year, there were approximately 30 volunteers.
“There’s over 50 now and we’re getting more. It’s increasing every week,” said Mimacho.
Since they started in April last year, the Kitchen Bees cooked 4,500 meals by bringing in volunteers every Tuesday and Thursday. The program provides volunteers with ingredients and recipes and in return, the volunteers provide their valuable time.
“A lot of people have lost their jobs. Parents have had to stay home,” said Mimacho.
“It's been really hard to put food on the table."
