The Soup Kitchen in the basement of St. Andrew’s Cathedral is the capital region’s oldest volunteer-run agency serving food to those in need, dating back to 1982, when it was started as the 9-10 Club.
These days, the legacy of founders Murray and Edna Black continues at View and Blanshard streets, with bagged meals handed out from 8 to 10 a.m. Monday to Friday and on holidays — including Christmas.
“Christmas is our most popular day to volunteer,” said Steph Hartwig, who has been helping at the Soup Kitchen for two years and calls volunteers “the heart of what we do.”
From 110 to 200 people are served each day the service is open, she said.
Keeping the Soup Kitchen going requires donations and funding support, and a grant from the Times Colonist Christmas Fund has a big impact, Hartwig said.
“It helps hugely,” she said. “That’s basically how we survive — we’re fully run on donations and grants that we get.”
The operation is 100 per cent volunteer-run, “so every dollar we get goes straight back into the program,” Hartwig said.
The Soup Kitchen also receives in-kind donations such as a regular supply of bread from COBS Bread in Oak Bay.
Hartwig said the people who use the service, ranging in age from about 15 to 96, go away with “a very hearty, protein-focused lunch” that includes freshly made soup, a hard-boiled egg, fruit and a meat-and-cheese sandwich.
Daily visitor Stefanie Postnikoff said she loves the food, which is a key part of her diet. “I love the staff, too, I really love them.”
The Times Colonist Christmas Fund helps a range of agencies like the Soup Kitchen from the Victoria area to the Gulf Islands and other parts of Vancouver Island.
The fund was started in 1956 when it was known as the 500 Fund and intended to help 500 of the region’s neediest families. When the need for assistance grew, it was renamed the 1000 Fund in 1980 before a switch to the Christmas Fund two decades later.
The 2024 campaign was launched Nov. 12 with a goal of topping the $1.12 million raised last year, and saw the best opening week since the fund began — reaching $145,378. The total came from 316 individuals, families and businesses, and was buoyed by a $50,000 donation from Andrew Sheret Limited.
The Sovereign Order of St. John of Jerusalem, Knights Hospitaller helps seek out the groups most in need of support from the fund.
HOW TO DONATE TO THE CHRISTMAS FUND
• Go to the Times Colonist Christmas Fund web page, tcchristmasfund.com, which links to CanadaHelps. That site, which handles online donations, is open 24 hours a day and provides an immediate tax receipt.
• Drop off a cheque made out to the Times Colonist Christmas Fund at the Times Colonist office, 201-655 Tyee Rd. in Vic West. (It’s the first building on your left as you cross the Bay Street bridge.)
• Or use your credit card by phoning 250-995-4438 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
