THE JUNCTION OF “THE BREAD OF LIFE” AND “THE STAFF OF LIFE”
Meadowvale East Apostolic Church is committed to ensuring that the gospel is not only preached in the community, but also experienced by the community. When Meadowvale East Apostolic Church became aware of the insufficiency of a fundamental and basic need -”FOOD”, among men, women, and children residing in the surrounding community, it knew that this knowledge required action.In November 2004, in response to this need, with the support of the Board of Directors and the congregation, the doors of the Meadowvale East Apostolic Church Food Bank, as an agency of The Daily Bread Food Bank, opened. Throughout the last 16 years, except for statutory holidays, the Food Bank opened two days per week and was blessed to provide this service over 30,000 times to a diversity of individuals.
Initially, we operated out of the Church building and quickly realized we needed to expand our operations. In 2007, we purchased a refurbished trailer that allowed us to address the expanded needs of the community and best serve our clients.
We continued to serve the community providing not only food, but access to referral services that assists our clients with employment, community services and government programs. It was not surprising that over time there was a need for further expansion. In 2012, Meadowvale East Apostolic Church purchased two-used school portables and currently operates out of these units. This additional space allowed us the opportunity for the distribution of gently used clothing and household items. We were also able to establish our Annual community holiday dinner, providing a traditional meal and a time for members of our community to meet and mingle.
Our current services include all that we described, and we continue to explore opportunities to do more and have a greater impact on the lives of the people in our community. In 2020, we initiated an additional partnership with Second Harvest. This partnership allows us to provide a greater variety of foods to our clients. We serve approximately 1,000 client monthly and provide approximately 1,000 hampers of food on average per month. Each hamper contains a variety of non-perishable items, meats, dairy and vegetables. We also provide sanitary products, soaps, and laundry detergents.
We are a needs-based service. As a result, depending on the year and the economy, we meet, serve, and form relationships with clients from all nationalities and socioeconomic backgrounds within the catchment area of St. Clair Avenue to our south, the 401 Highway to our north, Midland Avenue to our east, and Victoria Park Avenue to our west.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is seen by the tremendous increase in the number of clients we are serving on a weekly basis. However, we have equally seen an increase in the generosity and willingness to help from companies, people and second to none, the front-line workers, our employees, and volunteers.
We appreciate that we meet you during times that are harder than desired, but Meadowvale East Apostolic Church’s mandate is to bring a comforting experience to an otherwise difficult, and at times, devastating period. Our hope is that you feel welcome and respected, and leave encouraged knowing that opportunities are always on the horizon, and with the grace of God.
We are always available to receive any inquiries via our email address at:
God bless you, and thank you for allowing us to serve you!