03/25/2026
Important updates about the meal train! 🍲🍛🥗
IMPORTANT UPDATES RE: MEAL TRAIN!
Over the past year, thanks to the generosity of you all, we have prepared and shared home-cooked meals and snacks nearly every day for 20- 30 people. Wow! What began as a short-term response grew into a daily commitment made possible by an incredible community of cooks, donors, volunteers, old, and new friends showing up to care for one another.
As we approach early April, we wanted to share an important update. With the upcoming opening of the temporary 40-bed emergency shelter, the qathet Coalition to End Homelessness is preparing to transition away from hosting nightly meals at the Clubhouse. The hope is that the new temporary shelter will be a safe place for many in our community (and this includes dinner for those accessing the shelter). During the past year of this meal train experience we saw just a sliver of the food insecurity that exists for many people in this community, sometimes directly linked to housing instability, affordability, disability, or other reasons. We are aware some of our neighbours will be missing out on access to food and connection when the nightly Clubhouse meals end. That said, our hope is to refocus the Coalition’s energy toward determining the next phase of our work. Recognizing that while the temporary emergency shelter is necessary, we know that long-term shelter living is not the goal — autonomy and stability are.
We will let you know when the last nightly Clubhouse meal will be. Please keep an eye on the calendar as we navigate through this transition and provide further updates as we know them.
As we transition, we will be moving away from accepting most clothing, towel, and bedding donations (but could still accept sleeping bags or good jackets for the time being). We will continue to accept ready to go snacks and beverages until the nightly meals end. The qCEH laundry fund still exists at the Westview Laundromat for folks to donate to, which supports folks still outside in getting their laundry done efficiently (or at all).
As we prepare for this shift, perhaps some of you may wish to continue the spirit of community meals in new ways. (That would be our dream!) If you’re interested in being part of a group to explore ongoing meal support or want to help coordinate something new, please email us at: [email protected]
We'll help compile a list so that someone (or a few folks!) can step forward to carry this important work onward.
Thank you for every meal made, snack dropped off, and moments of care shared this past year. Together, we’ve accomplished something pretty amazing and experienced some great community along the way.
If you are interested in becoming a member of the qathet Coalition to End Homelessness to continue to follow and support our work, please email us and we will forward you the membership form and instructions!
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