Kitchen renovations at Orillia food bank ramp up meal program
After three years of meticulous planning and hard work, the Sharing Place in Orillia kitchen renovations are complete, generating thousands of healthy meals.
For the past month, staff have been making meals free of charge out of their new kitchen for people in need in the community.
Although the meal program has been taking place for three years now at St. James Church, the team at the Sharing Place says having their own space to cook has been a considerable benefit.
- Download the CTV News app free to get updates and alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox
"Since open, everything's been going really smoothly," said Zachary Vaillancourt, executive chef at the Sharing Place. "Before the kitchen was open itself, we were doing about 300 to 500 meals and in the month that we've been open, we've been able to double it doing a little over a thousand meals a week."
Vaillancourt said he uses the donated foods and raw ingredients to the best of his ability to make healthy meals that people can easily enjoy.
"Some of our clients who access the food bank aren't able to cook for themselves in that sense or don't have access to a place where they're able to cook. Today, we're doing honey roasted garlic red chicken and egg fried rice," said Vaillancourt.
Volunteers involved say the response from individuals receiving the meals has been overwhelming.
The newly renovated kitchen at The Sharing Place in Orillia, Ont. (CTV News/Molly Frommer)
"I wanted to volunteer because I've seen what a big impact this place has on my community, and I wanted to be a part of it. We get calls from people saying how much it helps them and just the feeling you get when you receive those calls," said volunteer Kolton Ditchburn.
"Handing out the meals free of charge is really good. I work up at the front, so I hand out the meals, so I get a lot of good comments on how good the meals are and everything," said volunteer Karen Low-on.
Executive director of the Sharing Place, Chris Peacock, said with inflation, the timing of the completed kitchen renovations could not be better.
"A lot of dual-income families now are sitting in a position where they're not able to fill their kid's lunch boxes. So, we're hoping that we can continue to get support from our community and support over 18 per cent of our community in low-income, and that was a stat before inflationary times in 2021. We know that that is only going to get worse, and we need to be here for those individuals," Peacock said.
Officials at the Sharing Place say by Christmas they hope to double the number of meals made to 2,000.
Staff are also looking to bring on roughly a dozen more volunteers.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
![](https://www.ctvnews.ca/polopoly_fs/1.5346613.1719853464!/httpImage/image.jpg_gen/derivatives/landscape_800/image.jpg)
If you qualify for this tax credit, you can expect a payment in your bank account this week
The next quarterly GST/HST tax credit payment is expected to go out this week, according to the Canada Revenue Agency.
U.S. Supreme Court rules Trump has immunity for official, not private acts
The U.S. Supreme Court found on Monday that Donald Trump cannot be prosecuted for any actions that were within his constitutional powers as president, but can for private acts, in a landmark ruling recognizing for the first time any form of presidential immunity from prosecution.
Woman faces charge of trying to smuggle turtles across Vermont lake to Canada by kayak
A woman from China has been arrested at a Vermont lake bordering Quebec for trying to smuggle 29 eastern box turtles, a protected species, into Canada by kayak, according to Border Patrol agents.
These ultraprocessed foods may shorten your life, study says
Eating higher levels of ultraprocessed food may shorten lifespans by more than 10 per cent, according to a new, unpublished study of over 500,000 people whom researchers followed for nearly three decades.
On July 1, 1916, a generation of Newfoundlanders died in one brief battle
Millions are celebrating Canada’s 157th birthday this year -- as they do every year -- with fireworks, food and family. In Newfoundland, it is a day of mourning for one of the bloodiest battles of the First World War.
You might live to be 100 years old. But will you be able to afford it?
Retirement has historically lasted about two decades, but for some Canadians it is now extending to twice that amount of time as more live well into their 90s and beyond. That's making some rethink their investments, savings, expenses and when to retire.
Canada Day festivities attract hundreds at ceremonies, parties across the country
The Maple Leaf is flying on lampposts, flagpoles and patios across the country as cities from coast to coast welcome thousands of revellers for Canada Day.
Scientists wary of bird flu pandemic 'unfolding in slow motion'
Scientists tracking the spread of bird flu are increasingly concerned that gaps in surveillance may keep them several steps behind a new pandemic, according to Reuters interviews with more than a dozen leading disease experts.
Eight 'tow truck-related' shootings in Toronto, no injuries reported: police
Toronto police are looking for a stolen vehicle in connection with at least eight separate shootings in the city over the weekend.