We got the Centre’s kitchen off to a running start serving up a delicious Pancake Brunch for our first meal of 2023!
There are some exciting developments in the kitchen in this new year. February marks my eleventh anniversary of working at the Centre together with my team of 80 volunteers. Over the past 11 years my duties have outgrown my ability to get everything done without working copious overtime. So I’m thrilled to announce that the Centre has hired a sous chef for me. Liz was previously a volunteer in our kitchen and has already become a valuable asset to our team. She will be working Mondays and Thursdays most of the time to help with the various tasks that maintain our programs. Already my longest days have become manageable with Liz working alongside us.
Volunteers have always been, and remain, the backbone and beating heart of the Seniors Centre. It is truly inspiring what the hard work and dedication of our volunteers has accomplished over the years. I cannot adequately express my gratitude for their efforts and generosity. They have made our lunch program and frozen entree program wildly successful.
When I started work the kitchen would close completely during the summer months. One day a member came to me and said in a very distressed voice “. . . but what will I eat?” Then and there the idea to sell frozen entrees was born and I received approval to serve frozen meals alongside our daily hot lunches.
Over the years this program has slowly expanded and during Covid, exploded! Like many businesses we were well positioned to pivot away from indoor dining. With the reopening of indoor dining, the appetite for our frozen entrees has not diminished whatsoever. We have made good use of the grant for our new dishwasher which was installed at the beginning of the year.
On a separate note, December 2023 will see a nationwide ban on single use plastics. We are working toward compliance in our kitchen. We use paper and foil containers and we have bamboo cutlery for takeaway meals. But we need to move away from using plastic bags for takeaway and frozen meals. Let’s get into the habit of bringing a reuseable bag! Our members Dosi and Norma have taken it upon themselves to sew some beautiful returnable bags in order for us to kickstart this program. Thank you both so much! Feel free to ask for one and return it, just like the boomerang bag programs already running elsewhere. Let’s all do our part to end plastic waste.
Bon appétit!
