Thanksgiving at Our Place adapts to pandemic

Thanksgiving dinner for people in need may look a bit different this year at Our Place Society, but the emergency shelter has found ways to adapt to the pandemic.

Our Place will be serving turkey, mashed potatoes and all the fixings to 300 to 400 people from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

“People get excited about a social meal like turkey and potatoes and stuffing and gravy,” said Our Place spokesman Grant McKenzie, adding that more laughter can be heard inside the shelter during holiday dinners. “It lifts them out of that survival mode for a little bit.”

The difference this year is that diners will line up cafeteriastyle instead of being served at their table by politicians and community representatives. Patrons will be socially distanced at the tables and anyone who wants seconds will have to line up again to allow other guests to sit down for their meal, he said.

Our Place, at 919 Pandora Ave., will also host a second meal, sponsored by businessman Gordy Dodd, owner of Dodd’s Furniture and Mattress, on Friday from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. This is the 22nd year Dodd has sponsored a Thanksgiving dinner for the less fortunate.

The shelter is expecting about half the number of patrons compared to previous years, McKenzie said. Some seniors, people with mobility issues or people on low income who rely on Our Place as a community centre have not been visiting during the pandemic, he said.

Our Place CEO Julian Daly

said he expects to see some new faces at the Thanksgiving dinner this year, as many people are experiencing financial hardship due to COVID-19.

“Our Place has always been there for people going through difficult times regardless of the

reason,” Daly said in a statement. “And this year, more than ever, people who thought they would never need our services are finding our doors are open.”

Our Place will also have showers open evenings from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. thanks to COVID relief

funding from the City of Victoria.

The shelter provides shower services during the day but McKenzie said the working poor often need access to showers after business hours. The city will provide $8,500 a month to keep the showers open in the

evening, but McKenzie said it’s unclear how long that funding will last because Our Place has to reapply each month.

“We’re hoping we can have it for six months through the winter,” he said.

ADRIAN LAM, TIMES COLONIST Chef Casey O’Gorman shows off a tray of cooked turkey in the Our Place kitchen on Monday. Up to 400 people are expected for Thanksgiving dinner at the emergency shelter.