Upgrades to our kitchen

This year The North Grove’s Community Food Centre celebrated 10 years of expanded service to this community. That translates into more than 240,000 meals served in our community dining room, so its no surprise that our equipment needed some upgrades.  

That’s why The North Grove is so grateful to the Department of Communities, Culture, Tourism and Heritage and its Community Facilities Improvement grant, which recently funded upgrades of our refrigeration, dishwashing and cooking areas.  

The grant covered $50,000 in costs for a wide variety of areas where our kitchen was showing wear and tear and creating safety hazards for staff and volunteers. Our walk-in fridge had an issue with condensation that has been improved thanks to this funding. The previous ovens were unreliable. This funding enabled us to purchase new ovens and a warming drawer, which will make cooking meals for the community easier. 

By fixing our walk-in fridge, it has become more efficient and so we are spending less on power to keep our food cool.  

We also bought a new industrial fridge and freezer that keep our food fresh longer. The fridge and freezer are connected to our generator; in the event of a power outage, The North Grove can sustain our food stores and serve the community.  

The steel countertops had holes that made it challenging to use for food demonstrations and making preserves with the community. With the fixed countertops, we have more space for the community to take part in important food programs. A new mirror was installed above the countertop where food demonstrations take place. This mirror allows all members of the community to view and be involved in the program. 

We are so grateful for this financial support, which allowed us to put more of our fundraised dollars towards meals and a wide variety of other programs for The North Grove community. 

Thank you!