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Sr. Ann Marshall of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph remains a steadfast volunteer at St. Joe’s Cafe in London, Ont.
Photo courtesy St. Joe’s Café
November 6, 2024
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Inspired by Sirach 21:5, Pope Francis declared “the prayer of the poor rises up to God” as the theme statement for the 2024 World Day of the Poor.
In a written message to the faithful published on the Vatican website regarding the Nov. 17 observance, the Pontiff emphasized how God “takes care of those who are most in need: the poor, the marginalized, the suffering and the forgotten.”
The Bishop of Rome stressed the inclusivity of his message by declaring how “in His eyes, we are all poor and needy. We are all beggars because, without God, we would be nothing.”
Echoing Pope Francis, Philip Calvert, the chief development officer of The Mustard Seed, a Christian non-profit organization caring for individuals experiencing homelessness and poverty, said disciples are called to model the Lord’s example by drawing closer to the impoverished.
“Scripturally speaking, we know that proximity to issues like poverty is a very distinct call Jesus speaks about through Scripture, and it is where He resides,” said Calvert.
The Mustard Seed has meaningfully encountered the poor at its ministry locations in Kamloops, B.C., and Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer, Medicine Hat and Grande Prairie, Alta., by this year serving 657,000 meals as of Sept. 30. The nine-month total means the 40-year-old registered charity anticipates surpassing the 700,000 meals provided during 2023.
The use of The Mustard Seed’s provisions in 2024 is just one of many manifestations of Canada’s worsening food security crisis. Another indicator is that all Mustard Seed shelters remained at full occupancy every month this year instead of dipping to 75 to 80 per cent in the summer.
It’s a similar story at St. Joe’s Café, a community outreach program operated by the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph in London, Ont. The hospitality centre is now serving an average of 200 people at breakfast and lunchtime from Monday to Friday. The need has become so great that Saturday and holiday luncheons were added in recent months — services that have never been offered during the four-decade history of the café.
Tracey Morton-Sader, St. Joe’s Café director, gives the need crucial context.
“We’ve always had people who come by once in a while and ask ‘hey can I have a care package? I just need a couple of loaves of bread to get through the month.’ Now that group has turned into people using us on a full-time basis because they cannot make ends meet. They are in here for two meals a day and they are seeking care packages,” Morton-Sader told The Catholic Register. Usage numbers indicate virtually every Canadian food bank or meal service is strained by demand that would have seemed unimaginable before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Food Banks Canada’s 2024 HungerCount report, released Oct. 28, reveals a historic two million visits to 2,589 participating establishments this past March. It’s a stunning 90-per-cent increase from 2019, and a six-per-cent jump over 2023 alone.
An all-time high of 18.1 per cent of clients declared employment as their main source of income compared to just 12 per cent five years ago. Children comprised 681,450 food bank users, almost exactly one-third of the total clientele. Over 32 per cent of visits were driven by people living in Canada for 10 years or less.
Not including hamper programs, food banks served over 4.1 million meals and snacks during March 2024 alone. Both Stewart and Morton-Sader expressed hope that World Day of the Poor will inspire Canadian Catholics and non-Catholics to pay closer attention to the plight of the homeless and hungry and the pressures experienced by the charities striving to lend support.
In the case of The Mustard Seed, its difficulties can be illustrated by the increase in the size of donation required to provide a meal for someone in need. Two years ago it was $3.51. Now, a contribution of $5.38 is required.
Stewart said The Mustard Seed — soon to open a location in Saskatoon — said he hopes prospective donors also consider the possibility of volunteering.
“(Helpers) are surprised by how fun it is to come to the Mustard Seed and volunteer, whether it’s themselves, a group from their church or even their work,” said Stewart. “You’re building community and being part of that solution.”
Meanwhile, Morton-Sader encourages people to join the St. Joe’s Café’s efforts to sustain the altruistic legacy of the Sisters of St. Joseph, known as the worker sisters, because they “do the work and good deeds quietly to the best of their ability.”
“What they’ve always wanted to portray was to love thy neighbour, to be caring, helpful and to give a hand up.”
(Amundson is an associate editor and writer for The Catholic Register.)
A version of this story appeared in the November 10, 2024, issue of The Catholic Registerwith the headline "Non-profit meal sites add days to feed demand".
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