For five years, Kristine Shepherd and her grassroots Monday Night Dinners ensured the homeless and destitute of Penticton could chow down on one hot, nutritious meal every week.
When Shepherd officially announced three months ago that she was leaving the project to focus on her personal life, her singular concern was finding someone to take over.
And now she has. Granted, the "Monday Night Dinners" tag is no more. And the new folks running the show won't be setting up shop at MND's familiar -- and controversial -- Nanaimo Square location.
But in every other way, Penticton's Jane Bruff and Glenn Pearson bring a ton to the table. Indeed, they warrant a story all on their own.
When news of the oncoming COVID-19 pandemic finally got serious in March of this year, one of the first casualties was Penticton's Soupateria, where 100 or so freebie hot lunches are pumped out every day.
And Bruff and Pearson, an otherwise normal couple who don't wear superhero capes and aren't publicity seekers, sprang into action.
"Glenn saw the article (on Soupateria's closing) and said 'Honey, we have to do something,'" said Bruff earlier this week at the couple's home not far from downtown. "It was that simple."
"When something like this happens," added Pearson, "the people who suffer are those who don't have anything."
That afternoon, Bruff hit the supermarket at a time when supermarkets were extremely difficult places to be, and bought burrito fixings. A shopping cart loaded with burrito fixings.
"The first thing I thought of was how economical and easy it would be to make and distribute burritos," she said.
Soupeteria would reopen not long after -- though at first only for bagged lunches -- yet Bruff and Pearson have continued doing their thing every night of the week but Monday, out of their own kitchen and generally out of their own pockets. She cooks the meals, he delivers them.
"Every day I was making 30 to 40 burritos, then I started making 300 burritos at a time and freezing them," said Bruff, who added they've since branched into other main courses, like chili and homemade biscuits.
But they don’t stop there. Aside from a hot meal, each recipient also gets a bag of goodies -- stuff like juice boxes, cookies, prepackaged bars, fruits and candies.
Once Bruff's cooked and prepped the meals, Pearson takes over in his pickup truck. He typically covers a wide swath, from "Okanagan Lake all the way to the WalMart area," and hasn’t ever had a problem spotting those in need.
"There were places as I was driving around during the day (he runs a roofing company with Bruff called Sun City Exteriors) where you’d see people," he said. "If there's a shopping cart that didn't have fresh groceries, that was a dead giveaway."
Pearson admits he's careful about who he approaches.
"If I see people who are visibly addled or intoxicated or high, I won't go to them. And there are a couple of guys where I have to be pretty picky as to when I'm going to supply them with a meal."
He's also found himself in situations where the intended recipient isn't homeless at all, and is in fact quite insulted by the offer.
"But something we all need to remember," he said, "is that not everyone is an addict. There are a number of people I give meals to who are stone cold sober every time. Some claim they’ve lived on the street for five years."
Just recently, the duo came up with a name for their charitable enterprise: Blue Anchor. Pearson slaps a magnetic Blue Anchor sign on the side of his truck before he does his rounds so peeps know who he is as he pulls up.
And now that they've taken on Monday nights too, Blue Anchor runs all week long. That's generally a three- to four-hour daily commitment for Bruff and two for Pearson.
"We do have a little help through our community connections," said Bruff. "There are a couple of churches who've bought supplies for us. And just a couple days ago someone called and offered to bake bread for us."
But they certainly wouldn't turn down additional input, particularly during the tough, cold winter.
"Food donations like rice, pasta, cans of tomatoes, and packaged snacks would be great," said Bruff. "And we'd love to find someone who could occasionally cook from their home.
"One of the girls from Monday Night Dinners is helping us with driving, and there's another couple who does Sunday nights, but we'd welcome another occasional driver."
And yes, cash donations are always appreciated.
For more information on Blue Anchor or to donate, check out the Blue Anchor Facebook page or email Bruff and Pearson directly at [email protected].
