3 Canadian charities dedicated to helping cure hunger

Give the gift of good grub and a full stomach this season. These great Canadian charities are dedicated to helping cure hunger across the country.

Breakfast Club of Canada

There’s a hunger epidemic in Canadian schools. Each day nearly one in seven children are at risk to start class hungry. Breakfast Club of Canada provides nutritious food to children who, for whatever reason, can’t eat at home. Every morning, in 1,266 clubs across Canada, volunteers don their aprons and welcome close to 130,000 kids. Almost 21 million breakfasts are served over the course of the school year. Donate online, by text, cheque or money order, make a food donation, organize a fundraiser or volunteer.

Soup Sisters

In 2009, Calgary’s Sharon Hapton had a simple idea: that love comes in a bowl of soup. She felt that domestic abuse and youth homelessness could be helped with a program to provide soup to local shelters. Volunteers pay $55 to join a soup-making event at a local professional kitchen. Each event produces 150–200 servings of soup that are delivered to a local shelter. Soup Sisters (and Broth Brothers) operate in 19 cities across Canada. Buy The Soup Sisters and Broth Brothers Cookbook, to help fund more soup-making programs.

Food Banks Canada

This national charity represents and supports food bank communities across Canada. Food Banks Canada strives to meet the short-term needs food security and fi nd long-term solutions to hunger and curb the need for food banks and emergency food services. Donate online, host an event or make a gift in honour or in memory of someone. You can also volunteer with your local food bank, or even donate your old cell phone with the Phones for Food program.

Originally published in ParentsCanada magazine, December 2014.