From cream of mushroom to beef bean chili, St. James’ Anglican Church is spreading kindness, one cup of soup at a time.
St. James’ Anglican Church, located at Union and Arch St., hosted a Soup-to-Go event outside the church on Feb.12. Facing the frost, a small group of volunteers stood outside beside steaming crockpots, handing out around 120 cups of free soup—including gluten-free and vegetarian options—to ersby. The event started at 11:15 a.m. and continued until they ran out of soup at around 1:00 p.m.
ed by St. James parishioners, the Church puts out a call on Sunday mornings, inviting to donate soup for distribution on Wednesdays.
Many of the events hosted by the Church, including this Soup-to-Go, are run collaboratively with Queen’s Canterbury, an AMS ratified club who host speaker events, food events similar to Soup-to-Go, caroling, and more.
The Church launched the Soup-to-Go program last year, aiming to host three free soup days throughout the winter. However, one was canceled due to rain. This year, they’re two thirds of the way closer to their goal, hosting two soup days on Jan. 29 and in February, with the final one scheduled for March.
Patti Black, church parishioner and the driving force behind Soup-to-Go, spoke with The Journal about where the inspiration came from. According to Black, the Church saw a decrease in community engagement after the COVID-19 pandemic, and she wanted to change that. While students may be surprised by the offer of free food, that unexpected generosity is part of its success, Black said.
“People aren’t used to getting something for nothing, and that’s what we want to give. We’re just trying to warm people’s hearts and their bellies and just reach out with goodness,” Black said in an interview with The Journal.
Recognizing current challenges like food insecurity—which affects one in three households in the Kingston, Frontenac, and Lennox & Addington area—Black emphasized the Church is looking for ways to students and the broader community.
“We know how hard it is for students, we know how hard it is with food insecurity right now and so that’s one of the things we’re trying to help with [by] just reach[ing] out with some goodness. You guys [students] are away from home, you’re missing your families, so having a way to reach out is a good thing,” Black said.
“Students are really busy, students’ budgets are really tight, and some people really can’t afford a nutritious meal. It’s winter, and it’s just a way to care for our neighbours,” Anglican Chaplain at the University Lisa Chisholm-Smith said in an interview with The Journal .
Chisholm-Smith recalled their most successful soup distribution last January, when they happened to catch a group of engineering students leaving Walter Light Hall after class. This January, the Church gave out approximately 135 cups of soup.
The Church also organizes free dinner events for students annually during exam periods in December and April—both as an act of community service and as a way to challenge some of the negative impressions associated with religion.
“A lot of people have a negative impression of the Church or religion, and so part of it is positive public relations. There are a lot of caring people who are also committed to their faith, and this is an expression of that,” Chisholm-Smith said.
St. James’ Anglican Church will continue offering free meals for students during the cold winter months.
Tags
All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s) in Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be ed, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to [email protected].