blog

April 2022:

On Saturday April 2nd of 2022, Nonnina’s Table held an Easter/Ramadan  food basket event for approximately two hundred families!

Fresh vegetables and fruit, deli products, bread, chickens (including Halal ones), clothing and toys were given to individuals and communities.
Nonnina’s Table volunteers packed the food, clothing, and toys and did curbside delivery to the families who were very grateful to receive the food.

We at Nonnina’s Table felt it was a very successful event!

May 2022:

In May, 50 families received food boxes and clothes.
Every second Monday 200 sandwiches with salad are distributed  at Pelham Park Community Homes.
We helped individuals send food to 3 villages across St Vincent, Barbados, Iran, and Jamaica, and helped a church and school in Haiti.

75 baskets of food and warm clothes have been given out in the community.

Nonnina’s Table has continued to support the people at Pelham Court Community Housing. Throughout 2021, Pelham Court has received lunch that was distributed to residents every week or every two weeks.
Also furniture and clothing have been distributed to families in Pelham Court as needed or requested.

Many food baskets and clothing have been given to families that have been brought to the attention of the Nonnina’s Table organization. These people were brought to us by volunteers from Oakville, Toronto, and Brampton at various times throughout the year. Many people requested diapers for babies and diapers for adults being taken care of at home.

During spring, the Ontario Trillium Foundation graciously accepted our grant proposal!

The proposal was for helping us expand our cooking and food storage capacity, to allow us to bring out more meals at cheaper costs.

As a charity, we receive a lot of food donations, and sometimes we couldn’t accept them because of our limited storage. The same can be said about taking advantage of great deals on groceries. Where would we store all that food? Well now we can!

With the grant we have purchased freezers, a fridge, and a barbecue, all thanks to the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

In December of 2020, Nonnina’s Table and COFION (Canadian Organization for the Integration of Newcomers), hosted a joint pandemic event at Scadding Court Community Centre in which 400 food hampers were given out to the public. The hampers, given out to each family, included various types of fruit and vegetables, bread, rice, pasta. In addition, each family received a large turkey. Enough food for the families to have at Christmas and many other meals and snacks. Everyone that received a hamper was very thankful and went home with a lot of food, clothing and toys for the children.
Thank you to all the volunteers for many hours of hard work sorting toys, clothing and food for the families. Without the many volunteer hours, food and money from our donors, an event this large could never take place.

During the pandemic, volunteers have spent many hours weekly, making sandwiches, soup and other delicious meals for the Pelham Park Ontario Housing Complex. This past winter and spring a minimum of 150 sandwiches have been made and distributed each week at Pelham Park.
Many food baskets have also been distributed to families for Easter and for Ramadan.
Hundreds of food items, clothing and household goods have gone out to families, in need, throughout the GTA. Volunteers from both Nonnina’s Table and COFION, pick up and deliver these items, curbside, to single clients, seniors, single parent families and other families who are unable to go to food banks. Many are socially isolated from others or have no means of transportation to pick up for themselves.
Thank you to all the volunteer drivers, volunteer cooks and to other volunteers in both organizations that keep in contact with our clients each week.
It has been extremely difficult to provide items for our clients during this pandemic. Both Nonnina’s Table and COFION hear of more and more food insecure people each week. Also a BIG thank you to food and money donors who help provide food each week.
Lastly, thank you to Joan Yim and Sue Ditrani who coordinate this effort daily and weekly. They devote many hours keeping in contact with clients, picking up food from donors, shopping and cooking as well as distributing food. Without them, this initiative would not be successful.
In May of this year (2021), delivery of meals to Pelham Court, had to be scaled back to every two weeks rather than weekly due to a shortage of funds. Bread and pastries are delivered twice weekly, though, because those two items continue to be donated each week.

Around 120 food hampers were given out!

It is never too early to teach others to help the ones in need.

Hope everyone had a Happy and Joyous Easter.

This last Friday we packaged 95 bags of food for the less fortunate and had them delivered (curbside) We gave out: cheese, bacon, chicken, sausages salad, vegetables, desserts, tshirts, and sweaters. They were so happy to receive the bags of food for Easter. Some cried for joy others told us “we never knew that people cared about us.”
With the pandemic running wild our work has increased ten folds. Families’ needs have changed. Food is just one portion of their problem, there is also mental, financial, loneliness, etc. There are days when Sue is listening to their problems for more than an hour.
This coming week we will be putting together food bags for Ramadan. We will do 35 bags. We hope to get some halal meats, beans, rice etc.
We would like to thank all of you for your time, financial support and food products. As a team we are happy with the outcome with our Easter food bags and hope our Ramadan project will be just as successful.  It is our first attempt to make food bags for Easter and Ramadan, and hope to continue doing it.
Kim please thank your Mom for allowing us to use her garage. I don’t have her email address.

keep safe and will keep in touch

joan and team

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nonnina’s Table has not been able to offer the monthly meal service since February this year. Fortunately, with donations, we have been able to make food baskets to give out to many families on a weekly basis. Below are some wonderful Thank You letters we have received.