A feast of food and faith at Union Gospel Mission

The smell of turkey, gravy and all the fixings wafted from the front doors of Union Gospel Mission Saturday afternoon, where a line was quickly forming behind Ted Chartrand.

“I come here almost every day,” he said. “They treat us really good and the food is good.”

Chartrand was among the third wave of people to be served Thanksgiving dinner and a sermon at the mission on Princess Street, which has been hosting the annual meal for 20 years.

The 70-year-old pensioner comes every other day for soup and other hot food the church serves daily, but Saturday’s meal was a real treat, he said.

Inside, a team of cooks and volunteers worked to set plates of food, pie and juice at the tables in the cafeteria, while about 100 people were in the chapel listening to a sermon.

By day’s end, the mission will have served upwards of 300 patrons experiencing homelessness or living near the poverty line.

Moxie, a volunteer scooping mashed potatoes and portioning turkey on plates, says working the function reminds her how grateful she is in her day-to-day life.

“These people are less privileged than I am and it’s nice to see them get the chance to eat a proper meal,” she said.

“As Christians we’re called to help the helpless,” said Dash, another volunteer manning the veggies.

The need for meals has grown exponentially in recent years, said Mark Kelm, the mission’s senior chaplain. When Kelm joined the church 13 years ago there were fewer people and the age of recipients skewed older.

These days, young men are the predominant population.

“Because of (drugs) and and more young people who are getting hooked on it, we’re seeing more and more young people coming,” Kelm said.

The charity provides lunch and dinner daily, as well as coffee at 2 p.m.

Last year, food banks such as Harvest Manitoba and the Christmas Cheer Board reported record need. Kelm says finding donations for regular operations and the annual Thanksgiving dinner has never been an issue, even during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“If anything, people doubled down and wanted to find more ways to help,” he said.

The meals also serve as a way to connect with people and spread the word about various programming at the mission, including a residential drug and alcohol treatment program for men.

The program can host up to 26 men at the Princess Street building and is between six and 12 months.

Kelm says the simple act of connecting with people who come through the doors of the church can make a difference.

“We just try to show the love of Christ to people, and let them know that there are people who care. Because everyone needs to know that,” he said.

nicole.buffie@freepress.mb.ca