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St. Davids Lions Club preparing meal kits for those in need

Deborah Chagnon’s vehicle was so full of groceries that it took several trips with two carts before it was fully unloaded into the St. Davids Lions Club Tuesday.
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Bradd Anderson and Deborah Chagnon, St. Davids Lions members, organize meal kits to go to those in need.

Deborah Chagnon’s vehicle was so full of groceries that it took several trips with two carts before it was fully unloaded into the St. Davids Lions Club Tuesday.

Chagnon, club secretary, and Bradd Anderson, Lions Club International Foundation coordinator, will be building community meal kits with 11 other club members for distribution to Newark Neighbours, Project Share in Niagara Falls and Westview Centre 4 Women in St Catharines.

“It started two years ago when Debbie brought the idea from her church,” said Anderson. “She provided us with some recipes that feed a family of four to five persons.”

“One of our global causes is hunger,” said Chagnon. “When COVID hit, my church was unable to continue doing this. It’s a great service project so I brought it here.”

“We started with club funding from monies we raised, and with donations from club members. Because we do it about three times a year,” explained Anderson, “the funding put a bit of a strain on our members.”

The Lions Club International Foundation is a global charity that responds when disaster strikes. Most recently, after devastating earthquakes struck Turkey and Syria, Lions and Lions Club International responded with support for families who lost their homes.

“Clubs and districts can apply for funds when there is a need,” said Anderson. “For example, we provided medical eye equipment worth a couple of hundred thousand dollars to the hospital in Welland.”

“Our club is fortunate enough to be able to donate to that foundation. And we can apply to that foundation for a need in the community. And hunger is a need, globally,” he added.

The volunteers plan to assemble 152 meal kits, with recipes such as chicken turkey bake and tomato bean soup, which require spice packages to be measured and packaged. A recipe card with step-by-step instructions is included.

“That’s a lot of meals to do three times a year,” said Chagnon. Project Share and Newark Neighbours hand them out as meals but at Westview Centre 4 Women, it's a little different. “They also use them for instruction purposes. Some young women come in and have never cooked before, so this gives them an opportunity.”

This initiative is also supported through funds raised by chocolate sales at Christmas and Easter. “That provides us with enough funds to do one of the three community meal kit projects,” she said.

And word is spreading. “We did get an inquiry from the Newmarket Lions Club and they are doing it now,” said Chagnon.