Since 2019, the people of Edmonton have known that the volunteers of Smile YEG would be at the same location ready to serve. Although they had a slight hiatus during COVID-19, once restrictions ended, Smile YEG was back in full force. Rhonda Dean, Director of Smile YEG, named the group partially in honor of the code for the Edmonton airport.
“We only have so many people that cook just for food safety reasons. All of our food is in Cambros, or we try desperately because we’re always in search of Cambros,” said Dean. “We have so much security with the Cambros, we just know it’s a good gig. We know how they work; they’re so easy to wash.”
Cambro learned about Smile YEG when a volunteer applied for our Cambro Cares program to request more Camtainers. Designed to support organizations that nourish our communities, our Cambro Cares program donated multiple Camtainers to help Smile YEG’s efforts.
Smile YEG starts serving at 6:30 pm and are out of food by 8 pm. Each week, they essentially serve the same menu because their visitors look forward to their favorite foods. The menu includes stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, alfredo pasta, Kraft Dinner (macaroni and cheese), Ichiban noodles, homemade pancakes with syrup, soup, coffee and juice.
“The weather’s really warm and our people are desperate for water or drinks and we’ve been running out of drinks normally. Cost-wise, I only can afford to buy so much water,” said Dean.
Typically, Smile YEG serves 300 to 500 people in line and another 100 to 150 people through outreach into nearby alleys, where they provide sandwiches and bagged lunches.
Everyone who volunteers to cook and serve has a full-time job, and to afford their ingredients each week, Dean has a part-time job to supplement her income.
“I’ve always thought there’s a time in everyone’s life where we need to give back. I’ve always believed that, and I think it’s just that time for me. The other part of it is, in the country we live in, we should not have hungry people. I firmly believe that. Regardless of what their issues are, we’ve all had struggles in life,” said Dean.
“The other part to me is as much as I say it’s all about food, it’s nothing to do with the food. The food is just our initial ‘in’; it gives us a reason to connect with the people. The majority of the time we’re out there, people just want to tell you their story or they want to feel human for lack of a better word.”
If you’re interested in donating to Smile YEG, contact Dean by email or join their Facebook group to learn more.
AUTHOR: ADRIANA DESIDERIO IS THE DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER AT CAMBRO.
