Happy New Year!
Welcome to my January newsletter...
Well, here we are! Another year has come and gone. I am sending you a New Year greeting full of peace and hope that you were able to rest over the holiday season. As I am writing this The Dale Girls are back in the office after a little break. We have finished our check in and staff meeting, have gone on a little outreach walk to set eyes on the neighbourhood and are puttering away in the office. I am also feeling extra grateful, as a new friend dropped off some very generous donations of much needed items and an old friend is preparing us lunch. We feel filled up by this love and encouraged by it. Ahead are some updates from the end of last year… thanks for joining me here.
As I mentioned in my last newsletter The Dale finally was able to move inside on Mondays for our lunch program. We are partnering with Toronto Community Housing in order to do this, utilizing a program room in their building across the street from our church. Many of our folks live there, so it’s a great way to see a lot of people for lunch and meet new folks too. We have simplified our meal as we cannot cook in that space - we heat meals we get from Second Harvest and have also started a Meal Train where our broader community can sign up to make soup and sandwiches for us to serve on a Monday. This has been amazing and well received by our community. Some people who used to volunteer at our previous location are also back around participating on a Monday, which feels great. Here are some photos of what a Monday meal looks like! If you would like to sign up to “sponsor” a meal, click here.
As you might recall, we had some fun activities planned for the late fall including a movie time, pumpkin carving and an Open Stage. We have been intentionally doing these things together in order to spend more time as a community, just hanging out and having fun rather than also providing a meal or supplies. It was life giving to do these things together, especially the Open Stage which is a place where people can come and sign up to sing or play music and other folks can sit and enjoy the show.
As the Christmas season drew closer we spent time doing traditonal things with each other such as carolling, having a Christmas feast, and celebrating Advent. Carolling is always a fun way to kick off December - a group from The Dale and Christ Church St. James gathers with a guitar and songbooks in hand to roam Parkdale singing carols and handing out treats. People clap for us and cheer, sing along, or just give us funny looks :) Then on a Monday close to Christmas we had our first indoor holiday feast in a couple of years serving turkey and all the fixings! This was a team effort - one church paid for the food, a small group of chefs volunteered their time to cook it, and another church packaged the meals. The year ended with a really lovely Christmas Eve time together handing out presents around Parkdale with our families and a church service with singing and prayer.
Please allow me to interrupt this newsletter with a little AD! My coworker Olivia and I are selling art cards this winter as a fundraiser! Every dollar we make at The Dale comes from fundraising, so all the money from these sales will go towards that. Each set of four cards is $20, and they are blank inside so you can write your own message! Send me a message to order a set if you’d like.
Thank you so much for your prayers for Charlotte as she transitioned into school. She is doing so well and really loving spending time learning and making friends. Her behaviour at home has improved as well - we have been spending our weekends swimming, playing outside, or just chilling in bed together with our dog. This year, the house we are renting will need some renovations which means moving out for a few weeks in the Spring. We found a place to rent in the meantime which is a huge weight off our shoulders. I would ask that you pray that we can transition well into that change, especially for Charlotte! She is a gal that loves familiarity and routine.
“Remember not the former things, nor consider the things of old. Behold, I am doing a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert.” Isaiah 43:18-19
Prayer Requests
Prayer for Charlotte as we prepare her to move out of our home in the Spring
Prayer for The Dale that we would have enough food on Mondays for our community lunch
Prayer that we would have more opportunity in the New Year for intentional fun time together as a community
This has been a bit of an odd season… I don’t know about you, but this year Christmas felt a little different to me and honestly I think it was partially the weather! It has been so foggy, rainy, and damp. This not only makes for a groggy time of year, but it is also especially hard if you are living outside. Having all of your belongings soaking wet during the day and freezing at night is a recipe for disaster. Some things that people could use in this weather are sleeping bags, new socks, and tents. Please also help those advocating for housing by writing or calling your local council. It can be a matter of life and death! I know there is a lot going on in the world right now and it can feel heavy. We are finding joy in the love from our community, and the generosity of YOU who walk along us in this work. Thank you for being here, from the bottom of my heart.