We are reaching out in hopes that you can help us. We are trying to identify community partners to help us coordinate meal distribution sites to feed our community members most in need.

The Downtown Victoria Business Association (DVBA) is working with the Coalition to End Homelessness, the City of Victoria, and local businesses to provide our most vulnerable population, those living without homes, with evening meals. During our situation with COVID-19 this is more and more difficult, as many of our local organizations and facilities that usually address some of the needs of this population are being asked to close due to public health concerns.

Here’s how we’re doing it:

The Meals – being coordinated, provided and delivered by our local commercial kitchens. Many of them by our incredible local restaurants who are not able to serve in their dining rooms at this time. 100+ meals are delivered in sealed containers to two sites in Victoria.

The Locations – the sites have been identified by the Coalition to End Homelessness and ensure that safe physical distancing can occur. Site #1 is at Beacon Hill Park. Site #2 is at Topaz Park.

Your Help Needed – now what we need is your help! We are trying to identify partners who would be willing to provide 2 site leaders to help us with coordinating the efforts of volunteers to distribute the food. We are also looking for volunteers to help at each site.

This is not a large operation: just a few tables at each site, volunteers to hand out the food and help to enforce 6ft. physical distancing.

The coordinators/site leads would oversee set-up of the tables and one 10×10’ tent, safe line-ups of people arriving to receive meals, providing info to volunteers on the process of the site, then clean up and load-out.

The whole process will be only an hour to an hour and a half. But it will provide over 100 people with a hot meal, each day. The site teams will need to arrive at 5pm to set up, and food is served at 5:45. All is finished by 6 – 6:15pm.

The DVBA will be coordinating the volunteers to hand out the food, but if your group has additional hands who want to help, please let us know!

Can we sign you up to help out this community?

Let us know if you have any questions. Please email maggie@downtownvictoria.ca.

Thank you in advance. There are so many in need, and so many of us who feel the need to help in these trying times. This is your way to do just that!