Good Shepherd Dinner

Hamilton’s Good Shepherd Centre hosted its annual Thanksgiving dinner Monday. About 500 guests enjoyed a plate of turkey with all the trimmings. Unfortunately, these numbers are an indication of an ongoing need in Hamilton.

Elise Copps has the story.

The turnout shows just how many people in the city can’t afford to put dinner on the table for thanksgiving, let alone every night. Several guests I spoke with said this isn’t just a chance to get a good square meal. It’s a chance to spend time with friends and give thanks for what they do have.

Marilyn Warren: “I’m hungry, I haven’t eaten in a few days.”

Marilyn is one of thousands of Hamiltonians who struggle to buy food every day: “I’m addicted to crack cocaine. Trying to clean myself up. I’m waiting to go into treatment.” She was at the Good Shepherd thanksgiving dinner to eat her first meal in days.

Alan Buehner is a cook with the Good Shepherd Centre: “We use probably 160 pounds of turkey, 80 pounds of stuffing. 150 pounds of potatoes.”

All to feed the 500 hungry guests who rely on them. volunteers dished out plates heaping with turkey and all the trimmings.

Alan Whittle is a spokesperson with: “We’re still basically operating at record levels that we’ve experienced in the last few years.”

Despite an economic upswing in parts of Hamilton, there is still great demand for services like the Good Shepherd.

Whittle: “There’s a bit of a mismatch between the skills of many people who are coming to programs like this and the jobs that are available are very different.”

Those people, like Marilyn, who are struggling to get on their feet, are greatful to have a warm meal to turn to: “There’s so many places in Hamilton you can go. you will never starve in Hamilton.”

To the volunteers who make it all happen, grateful guests give thanks with a smile, and a well cleaned plate.

Whittle: “It makes it that much more rewarding for us to know that people have left with full bellies and feeling good about the day with a sense of family.”

The centre is still in need of donations and volunteers. And while demand for basic food staples is still high, they have plans to expand their mandate to create a way to help Hamiltonians access more nutritious, fresh food in the future.