SIRCH Community Services

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Food Initiatives

SIRCH offers free frozen meals during COVID-19 global pandemic

At this unprecedented time, SIRCH Community Services is putting its resources and energies into providing healthy meals for any one who is struggling to provide for themselves and their families.

For many years, SIRCH’s Community Kitchen has made frozen meals for distribution to local food banks and community agencies. Starting this week, we are gearing up to more than triple the regular amount made.

You can ask for SIRCH meals at the food banks, and starting on Saturday, March 28, 2020, you can get take-out frozen meals directly from SIRCH Central. SIRCH Central will open every Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 2 Victoria Street in Haliburton (next to the laundromat).

We will be using social distancing protocols to help keep people safe. We prepare and package the meals under the very strict COVID-19 protocols to ensure meals are prepared in compliance with the latest food-handling and sanitation guidelines. No one will be allowed inside the building. The meals will be put into bags and brought out to you.

All of our frozen meals are free. SIRCH wants to support as many people as possible, so please ask for just what you will use over a weekend and leave some for your neighbours.

Each frozen meal comes with heating instructions and a nutritional label. Some meals are suitable for diabetics or others with special diets. Local produce is used whenever possible and groceries are purchased locally.

SIRCH has no base funding for this free food program—it relies on donations from individuals, organizations, churches and businesses. If you are able, your financial support is needed!

Donate what you can:

  • Online at www.sirch.on.ca/donate with Visa or MasterCard
  • By phoning 705-457-1742 with Visa or MasterCard
  • By cheque, mailed to SIRCH Community Services, Box 687, Haliburton, ON K0M 1S0
  • Via e-transfer to stacy_mclean@sirch.on.ca – send password in a separate email

Please help keep Haliburton County fed. In the end, we will be a stronger community if we band together and look after each other.

Will You Help Us Help Others?

Donate now!

Like SIRCH, you are concerned about your neighbours in Haliburton County.

You want to help those most affected by lay-offs, social distancing, self-quarantine and loss of financial security, but it’s risky to do practical things and you’re not sure where to start.

SIRCH has a simple way you can have an immediate impact on those who need help in Haliburton County during the COVID-19 crisis.

Up until now, SIRCH has been making 400 meals per month and distributing them free through food banks, Ontario Works and other organizations in Haliburton County.

Now with the coronavirus, the demand for healthy, prepared meals has drastically increased.

Why?

  • Hundreds of people have suddenly been laid off
  • One-third of our residents are seniors
  • Haliburton already has a 23% child poverty rate
  • We have the second highest cost of living in Ontario
  • Many will not be eligible for EI or other benefits

Prepared meals are essential for those with disabilities, anxiety, lack of cooking skills or resources, and for those who are ill, homeless and elderly. The food banks will do their best, but for many families this may not meet the need in this increasingly urgent situation.

During the pandemic and until our community is back on its feet, our goal is to increase the number of prepared meals from 400 to 1,400 meals each month.

We can do it, but we need your help.

SIRCH has no base funding for this free food program – it relies on donations from individuals, organizations, churches and businesses.

It costs SIRCH about $4 to make one healthy meal. Each comes with heating instructions and a nutritional label. Some meals are suitable for diabetics or others with special diets. Local produce is used whenever possible and groceries are purchased locally.

Please help keep Haliburton County fed.

With your help, SIRCH can meet the COVID-19 challenge: $5,600 per month for 6 months is needed.

Donate what you can:

  • Visa or MasterCard – give monthly or one-time. Call in with your card at 705-457-1742 or donate online at www.sirch.on.ca/donate
  • Via e-transfer to stacy_mclean@sirch.on.ca – send a separate email with your contact information (name, phone, address, postal code) so we can issue you a charitable tax receipt
  • By cheque, which can be mailed to SIRCH Community Services, Box 687, Haliburton, ON K0M 1S0

We can get through this.

In the end, we will be a stronger community if we band together and look after each other.

Sometimes our light goes out, but is blown again into instant flame by an encounter with another human being.”
~ Albert Schweitzer

Cook It Up returns to Molly’s Bistro Bakery

The wait is over! SIRCH’s Cook It Up is back at Molly’s Bistro Bakery!

Cook It Up is a free 16-week job training program offered annually by SIRCH Community Services for adults 18+ who want to work in restaurants, camps, or start a food business.

During the past month, Cook It Up trainees have been learning menu planning, following recipes, knife skills, serving customers and more. From March 10 to May 5, 2020, the trainees will host a free lunch every Tuesday at Molly’s Bistro Bakery, 170 Bobcaygeon Road, Minden, from 12 noon to 2 P.M.

SIRCH’s Executive Director, Gena Robertson, commented: “The free 3-course lunch is a genuine gift to the community from SIRCH. It’s a thank you for all your support. And it also gives our trainees a very authentic experience that they couldn’t find anywhere else. Part of the goal of Cook It Up is to help people feel connected, while building skills, confidence and a sense of community.”

“Our Cook It Up trainees are so excited to share their new-found skills with the public,” said Jay McIvor, SIRCH’s Food Initiatives Coordinator. “Every Tuesday, the trainees will create a three-course lunch with an international theme. There’s enough food each week for 65 people, so get there early!”

This is the sixth season of Cook It Up. This program has developed a strong reputation of training people to enter the food services industry. By the end of this program, 11 people will have increased knowledge, enthusiasm and expertise about food service and customer service.

Over the past five years of Cook It Up training, SIRCH has graduated 34 people from the program. 89% of graduates gained employment!

Visit www.sirch.on.ca for more information. Cook It Up Tuesday menus are posted by Monday.

SIRCH wants to thank Molly McInerny and Guy Dumas, owners of Molly’s Bistro Bakery, for sharing this restaurant on Tuesdays (a day it is typically closed) for the Cook It Up training program. The program is funded by Social Services, City of Kawartha Lakes.

Help keep the Community Kitchen cooking

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Volunteers in SIRCH’s Community Kitchen

For thirty years, SIRCH Community Services has had a mission. As needs in the community become apparent, especially gaps and issues affecting those most vulnerable, SIRCH often develops and implements programs to help.

One of these needs identified is for enough healthy food during challenging times.

According to Statistics Canada, 17.2 per cent of Haliburton County households are considered low income. In fact, Haliburton County has the second highest level of low income households in all of Ontario. This means many households struggle with putting food on the table. Parents may go without meals to feed their kids. Seniors’ fridges may be empty. Food insecurity affects health and brain development.

Through initiatives like Community Kitchen, SIRCH tries to make those tough times easier.

“It’s important to have foods that give you the nutrients you need to maintain your health, feel good, and have energy,” said Jay McIvor, SIRCH’s Food Initiatives Coordinator. “Many individuals and families in the county really can’t afford nutritious food when they’re struggling to pay bills or when they’re ill. One of the ways SIRCH is working on this issue is through the Community Kitchen,”

In the Community Kitchen, volunteers make healthy meals that are then distributed through local food banks and community agencies.

“Last year, the Community Kitchen made 3,600 meals for local residents,” said Jay. “Many people are unaware that SIRCH’s Community Kitchen receives no funding from government. Without the generous support of donors, we’d be unable to operate.”

Ken Mott of the Wilberforce Food Bank has seen the effects of Community Kitchen meals first hand. “Our clients really appreciate the food prepared by SIRCH’s Community Kitchen. The food bank’s clients often struggle to access nutritional food, so SIRCH’s efforts to provide meals that are tasty and nutritious makes a huge difference to people’s lives. Keep up the good work!”

As a non-profit charitable organization, SIRCH relies on the financial contributions of individuals and local businesses to help accomplish its mission. Each fall, SIRCH launches Gifts from the Heart as its community fundraiser.

“This is the eighth year of SIRCH’s Gifts from the Heart campaign,” said SIRCH Board President, Barbara Fawcett. “While the campaign has evolved and grown over that time, ultimately it’s about supporting a local organization that works in the local community for the betterment of local residents.”

To contribute to this year’s Gifts from the Heart campaign, visit www.sirch.on.ca/gifts or phone 705-457-1742. You can also visit SIRCH’s offices Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., located at 49 Maple Avenue, unit 4, Haliburton, to make a donation in person.

Lunch Is On Us Creates Connection

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Last Thursday, a woman (we’ll call her Mary) stopped in to Lunch Is On Us to pick up lunch for herself, and for a friend who was grieving over the loss of a loved one. The friend had told her she wasn’t eating much, so Mary thought some goulash soup and chicken pasta, along with company, would perk her up a bit. “I grew up with goulash” she told the chefs, Jay and Lydia, “It’s like comfort food to me.” She left just before meal service was closing.

At 2:15, Mary came flying back in the door. “Do you still have food?” she asked, slightly breathless. Jay assured her there was some left so she got the same orders again, explaining as she waited. As Mary had been walking to her friend’s house, she passed a woman walking a dog. They said a few words, and the other person confided that she was just in town that day to support someone going through cancer treatments. Mary listened and then thrust her bag with the two lunches at her. “Here take these,” she exclaimed. “They will be fairly easy for your friend to eat and I can go and get more.” She explained that Lunch Is On Us is all about connection and that they were free from SIRCH. With a smile, the woman took the lunches from Mary, thanked her, and headed back to her friend.

This is exactly what Lunch Is On Us is about. Making a winter day a little less lonely, a little less isolating—and a lot more bright for the Haliburton County community.

From November through March, SIRCH offers a free lunch once a week in Haliburton Village. Since we started in November, we’ve served 329 guests 129 main dishes, 127 sandwiches, and 211 soups and salads! All free. All done through donations, sponsorship and fundraising.

Gifts from the Heart is our major fundraiser and it supports Lunch Is On Us. To contribute to this year’s Gifts from the Heart campaign, visit www.sirch.on.ca/gifts or phone 705-457-1742. To make a donation in person, you can visit SIRCH’s offices Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., located at 49 Maple Avenue, Unit 4, Haliburton.

We hope to see Mary back every Thursday. And we hope to see you at SIRCH Central too (2 Victoria Street, Haliburton). Come and eat in, tell some tales, relax. Or take food out and share with a friend. Lunch is on us.

This fall and winter—Lunch Is On Us!

To help make the winter a little less lonely, a little less isolating—and a lot more bright—SIRCH Community Services is hosting Lunch Is On Us for the Haliburton County community.

“Winter can be tough! Below freezing temperatures, limited sunlight, and higher-than-ever household expenses, can leave you feeling pretty down and alone some days.” said Gena Robertson, Executive Director of SIRCH. “Lunch Is On Us lets you meet up with your friends or come and make new ones while having a delicious and healthy lunch at no cost to you!”

Starting November 7, 2019 until February 27, 2020, SIRCH will host Lunch Is On Us each Thursday from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at SIRCH Central, 2 Victoria Street, Haliburton. (Note, there is no Lunch Is On Us on Boxing Day, December 26, 2019.)

“Each Thursday, Lunch Is On Us will feature a different menu,” Jay McIvor, SIRCH’s Food Initiatives Coordinator, said enthusiastically. “For example, one week we may serve a hearty chilli with homemade buns, and another we’ll serve grilled cheese with bacon and homemade soup—always with a dessert, of course. We can serve 50 to 60 people each week. Meals can be eaten-in or taken-out.”

The first Lunch Is On Us is on November 7 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.

These lunches have been made possible by donations to Gifts from the Heart, sponsorships and other donations. “Lunch Is On Us is free of charge,” said Robertson. “It’s our way of thanking and supporting the community we live in, and we also are able to offer training opportunities to past graduates of Cook It Up. A donation jar will be available and if you’d like to ‘pay it forward’ we’d appreciate it, but there is no expectation—we just want people to come out, get warm, connect and have some fun.”

For more information about Lunch Is On Us, visit www.sirch.on.ca/lunchisonus or phone 705-457-1742.

SIRCH’s Lunch Is On Us program does not receive funding support from any level of government. SIRCH’s annual fundraising campaign, Gifts from the Heart, is currently underway and is an opportunity for you to support SIRCH programs including Lunch Is On Us. Visit www.sirch.on.ca/gifts to contribute.

So come and join us—for 16 winter weeks, Lunch Is On Us!