Community Response
The Friendship Inn
At the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis, the Friendship Inn responded quickly and shifted the Free Meal service to a take-away model on March 14, 2020. On the same day as the province’s declared State of Emergency, March 18, 2020, they made the decision to pause all of the additional programming – including the Volunteer and Fine Options Programs – in order to focus solely on providing food services in a safe manner. In those first few days the mindset had to shift quickly from ‘soup kitchen’ to ‘essential service.’
As the days unfolded, many health and safety precautions were implemented including guest signage for physical distancing, a plexi-booth for the front door, additional cleaning and sanitizing protocols, and the proper use and need for face masks.
Their once bustling dining area turned into a warehouse for take-away containers, bottled water, and food donations that continued to come in (much to everyone’s relief!).
With the continued support and help of our community, the Friendship Inn have been able to maintain provision of two nutritious meals (breakfast and lunch) each and every day to our community’s most in need.
