The executive director of A Loving Spoonful says when the non-profit first started in 1989, there were men and women dying every day from AIDS.
“It was heartbreaking because at that time not much was known about HIV/AIDS and transmission, so there was limited medication available for treatment,” says Lisa Martella.
But that’s not the case today and instead A Loving Spoonful’s client base is facing a demographic shift with 15 per cent aged 60 or older. That’s a trend Martella expects to continue, so funding for the organization is more vital than ever.
And that’s where Dining Out for Life comes in. The premise is easy: you eat breakfast, lunch or dinner at a participating restaurant in Whistler, Vancouver, the Lower Mainland, Bowen Island or White Rock and that establishment contributes 25 per cent of their food sales to A Loving Spoonful, which besides supporting men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS, offers nutritional counselling and meal planning. The non-profit also provides Easter dinner cooked by local chefs, created the Family Pantry Program, which supplies families with fruits, vegetables and other essentials, and delivers snack packs to clients full of fresh fruit, yogurt, bread, juice, milk and more. Today the organization makes an average of 100,000 meals per year to be delivered across Metro Vancouver by volunteers who use their own cars, gas and time to ensure those most vulnerable are fed.
We had some questions for Martella about A Loving Spoonful and Dining Out for Life:
Q: Where does your funding come from?
We receive approximately 20 per cent government funding and the rest needs to be secured by fundraising activities. The reason A Loving Spoonful has been in existence for over 28 years is simply because the community believes in the importance of our services. Our core values are food, love, hope and compassion.
Q: When did the demographic shift to older clients become obvious?
The shift in demographics has been steadily changing over the past 10 years. We are seeing more clients in their 50’s and 60’s and fewer in their 20’s and 30’s. Medications are readily available and effective to treat HI and what this means is that people are living longer. A new trend we have been seeing over the past couple of years is that over 50 per cent of our clients have a co-existing illness such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes and others.
Q: What's the age of your oldest clients?
We have had several clients well into their 80s. Our oldest client on service right now is 85. As an organization we are in a great place to be able to specifically cater to the changing dietary needs of our clients. We have a wonderful selection of meals that are high caloric, easy chew and low sodium. Also, our meals are balanced providing protein, vegetables and whole grains.
Q: That’s great news for your clients, but has that also impacted your annual budgets?
As many of us are aware food costs have been steadily increasing, we are cognizant of those factors and how they will impact the organization as we have more clients on service and for potentially longer periods of time. We continue to have innovative and exciting fundraising events to raise the important funds we need to operate. As people learn more about A Loving Spoonful and the significant impact we have on the community our support increases. Whether people are volunteering their time to deliver food or making a financial contribution, all of those acts of kindness contribute to our success as an organization.
Q: How does Dining Out for Life help?
Dining Out for Life is one of our signature events and raises a substantial amount of funds used to provide meals and support to those who need it most. We cannot thank the restaurant community enough for their support and rallying behind our organization throughout the years. We ask that on Thursday, March 22, diners select a participating restaurant at diningoutforlife.caand go out for breakfast, lunch or dinner — or all three!
If people can’t make it out March 22, they can still go to alovingspoonful.org to make a donation and make a difference right here in your community. For each $3.55 raised, a nutritious meal will be provided to an individual or family.
