St. Olave's Hunger Patrol

By Sue Careless

Volunteers David Burrows, Tina Sweeney & Dennis Torpy on patrol. Photo: Jake CzirakyEVERY SATURDAY night for the past thirteen years, St. Olave's Anglican Church has been feeding the homeless in downtown Toronto. And St. Olave's soup is legendary on the street.

"You can't get soup this good in a restaurant," the volunteers hear. Or, "I've been dreaming of the soup for three hours." Or, "I learned to cook in jail and this is good soup." And many offer, "My compliments to the chef."

It all started in November of 1996, just after the then new rector, David Burrows, became a regular volunteer with Hunger Patrol from Monday to Friday. The next spring he was asked to take over Hunger Patrol. He said he would but could only do it one night per week and chose Saturdays.

Thus, in the fall of 1997 St. Olave's Hunger Patrol was born. At first they worked out of the back of Burrow’s old car---not a very satisfactory arrangement---and then for a while the church rented a van on the weekends. Finally, they decided that a leased van would be a better deal.

From the beginning, Hunger Patrol has involved congregational members of all ages. Evelyn Milligan signed on as treasurer and continues to keep their account balanced. No money is ever requested but enough seems to roll in. Those who enjoy working in the kitchen still prepare soup every Saturday afternoon. Others wishing to get on the streets volunteer to drive around Saturday evenings ladling out the beef vegetable or chicken and rice. The youth group has often gone out on patrol. And even in the summer the soup is appreciated because it is filling and easy to swallow.  

For more than a decade Bread and Roses in Bloor-West Village has donated bread, bagels, danishes and Chelsea buns. “Their generosity over these years has been amazing,” says Burrows.

Kids Cook to Care

And recently a new cohort has added a culinary twist to the project.” Two mums from New York now living in Toronto wanted a program that would teach their children empathy. So Jill Lewis and Julie Levin devised Kids Cook to Care and have paired up with St Olave’s to feed the homeless. 

One Saturday a month any young family can show up for a cooking lesson taught by a top Toronto chef, a different one each month from among the city’s many fine restaurants. Recently the children prepared paella under the chef’s direction and St. Olave’s Hunger Patrol delivered it. (The youngsters do not go out on the actual patrol because street life can be somewhat rough and unpredictable.)

The patrol feeds a large crowd at Spadina and College Streets near the Scott Mission before it opens in the evening and a smaller one near Strachan House on Wellington near Bathurst and King. (Strachan House was a factory that has been attractively converted to seventy individual supportive housing units for the homeless by the non-profit Homes First Society.) If there are any baked goods leftover, they are donated to Strachan House’s shared kitchens. This is particularly helpful since its food budget has been cut.

St. Olave’s not only gives out soup, juice and baked goods but also socks (which are very important), sweaters, blankets and sleeping bags. Men’s clothing is in high demand. Last January they helped clothe a barefoot man dressed only in sweat pants and a t-shirt. The church manages a storage room for clothing that has been dropped off. Recently St. Olave’s also gave some donated down quilts to Strachan House.         

One of the Hunger Patrol's virtues is its dependability---if they say they’ll be back on the first Saturday of October after their summer break, they will be there. (They take a break for August and September.) And they try to learn about what the homeless really need. 

“We cruise around downtown and see many sad cases---the younger ones age so quickly on the street, especially if alcohol and drugs are involved, which they usually are,” says Burrows. “Hunger Patrol is not the solution---it is a band-aid cure at best. But for the moment we need to stop the bleeding.”  

This past winter one church member, Lorraine Bell, has been a regular on the patrol and she has found the experience to be “very humbling.” “They rely on you. They are there waiting. And they always say ‘thank you.’” 

The Back Door

The west end church also provides free space and support for the Back Door, a youth drop-in centre to help middle and early high school kids avoid life on the street. Doug and Morag Wilson work every Thursday with children in nearby Swansea Mews, then every other Friday they offer the older kids a healthy supper and a recreational drop-in in St. Olave’s parish hall. There the youngsters can play pool, table tennis, foosball, X-Box, floor hockey and a variety of card and board games. And there are even free guitar lessons. The Back Door also offers tutoring on a variety of subjects. There is always a high demand for math tutors.

The drop-in provides youth with a safe place to hang out with friends and adults who care. While the Swansea kids have few recreational facilities in their Toronto Housing Board neighbourhood, “Community and connecting with adults who care are almost more important than the actual equipment we offer,” says Morag.

This spring St. Olave’s is hoping to plant a community garden to help feed the homeless and the Back Door kids will probably dig in on the project. St. Olave’s wants to help those already on the street and prevent others from ending up there. It has its willing hands full.  

With files from St. Olave’s. For more information on the monthly cooking program email kidscooktocare@hotmail.com. For more on the Back Door contact bdoor@sympatico.ca.