A Christmas dinner: 60 turkeys, 45L of gravy, 2,700 volunteer hrs

Stovetops are hot at Souls Harbour Rescue Mission as it gets ready to host its annual Christmas dinner for people who can’t put a hot meal on the table this holiday season.

Kathy Ingram, director of finance and development with Souls Harbour, said supper will be served on Friday from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m.

“This is brilliant, we’re here to help people,” she said. “To see people coming in to help others, especially at Christmas time, it makes a huge difference.”

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Volunteers have been steadily coming in and out of the kitchen since the beginning of December to prepare for the feast, according to Ingram.

“It takes a lot of manpower,” she said. “We have a few staff, but we have a lot of volunteers coming in every day to help us cook and prep and get ready for Christmas.”

She said she has calculated about 2,700 volunteer hours have gone into preparation for the meal expected to host 600 people.

“We’re looking at cooking 60 turkeys, and you can’t do that all in one day, so you got to start ahead of time,” she said.

A volunteer peels potatoes in the kitchen at Souls Harbour Rescue Mission. (Gillian Massie/ 980 CJME)

Served with the roasted birds is 45 litres of gravy, according to Ingram. She said clients can expect a turkey feast with all the fixings.

Soul’s Harbour Rescue Mission relies on donations for its food program. Over the past few years, Ingram said she has seen more people come through the rescue mission’s doors in need of a meal.

“We’re seeing a lot more people, and we’re seeing a lot more children,” she said.

Two years ago, Ingram said the kitchen was making 2,000 meals in a month. That number has since risen to 4,000 meals a month.