From 5:00 pm to 6:15 pm every Monday through Friday, many guests, who are hungry for food and nourishment, come to the St. Joe’s Supper Table and are served sandwiches, hot meals, cookies, juice & coffee. Some like to come in to eat a hot meal while others prefer taking bagged lunches with them.

Each day, 6 to 8 volunteers work from 4:30pm to 7:00pm preparing food, serving and cleaning up. It is customary for the team to gather together for a brief moment of prayer prior to opening the door to our guests.

At Thanksgiving we serve a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Then, in mid-December, we serve a Christmas dinner in our parish hall. For this special event our 75 volunteers and choir members spread the joy of Christmas to all who attend. Our 390 guests who attended last year left our event with a feeling of dignity, respect, happiness and spirit of holiday season.

Getting it all together can be a rush and can be exhausting, but, with good teamwork, the evening can move along with little or no confusion. When all volunteers are aware of the job they are to do, serving the guests goes smoothly and the evening is enjoyable for all involved.

While conversing with the guests is encouraged and promotes a warm ambience, lengthy conversations are not possible because they prevent serving meals quickly and effectively, which can frustrate both guests and volunteers.

“We are a ministering community which serves the needs of its people and reaches out in solidarity especially to those who are poor and marginalised to the community at large.”