Serve > Advisory Board > Lunch Program
Lunch Program
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Volunteers
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The corner of Bloor Street and Avenue Road isn’t usually the first place that comes to mind when someone thinks about poverty and homelessness. It is, after all, at the edge of one of the most affluent neighbourhoods in Canada. But come by the church any weekday morning and you will find upwards of 100 of our city’s most marginalized citizens on our steps and throughout the building. They are part of a growing community of people from all walks and stages of life who gather here to get in from the cold, eat together and form relationships.
The Lunch Program, Redeemer’s weekday outreach ministry, began in the mid-1990s. Each weekday, we provide breakfast and lunch to people who are homeless, under-employed, lonely, or otherwise marginalized. We also provide nursing care, housing help, counselling, volunteer opportunities, and referrals to community resources. Our aim is to create an environment where people feel they belong, receive loving and compassionate care, make mutually edifying connections, and get back on their feet.
People come to the Lunch Program for different reasons. Some of us haven’t had a good meal for several days. Some of us are lonely or have nowhere else to go. Some of us want to learn. Some of us desire to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. Some of us want to discover what Jesus meant when he said we encounter him when we care for the poor and downtrodden.
Open: Monday – Friday, 9 AM – 11:45 AM
Breakfast: 9 AM – 10:15 AM
Lunch: 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Health Clinic: Monday and Thursday
Housing Help: 1st and 3rd Monday
Pastoral Counselling: Wednesday and Thursday
Talk & Pray: Thursday (8:30 AM)
Closed: holidays; mid-August – mid-September; 2 weeks over Christmas
Each month, we rely on more than 80 volunteers from the parish and the wider community, including residents, businesses, University of Toronto students, high schools, and service organizations. If your business or organization is interested in volunteering, please click here.
We're always looking for volunteers, to help in the kitchen with food prep, cooking, serving, and cleaning up, to assist at our health clinic or with shopping or laundry. Perhaps the most important thing, though, is just to sit, have a coffee and get to know people. It’s how we can build a sense of community and learn from, share with and encourage our guests.
You’re invited to be part of this community. Please feel welcome to stop by the church on a weekday morning to check things out and see whether you’d like to get involved with this integral ministry.
For further information, please see the resources below or contact Angie Hocking at 416-922-4948, ext. 215, or hockinga@theredeemer.ca.
Volunteer Application Form
Volunteer Orientation
You can make a financial contribution to the Lunch Program online or by mailing or bringing a cheque to the church office (payable to Church of the Redeemer with ‘Lunch Program’ on the memo line). We receive no government funds. Thank you.
Is your office or organization interested in volunteering? Please click here for more information!
| Autumn 2009 | 289 KB |
| Winter 2010 | 286 KB |
| Spring 2010 | 285 KB |
| Autumn 2010 | 370 KB |
| Spring 2011 | 655 KB |