A popular program serving hundreds of high school students could end with the school year in June unless the local community deems it worth saving.
Hope Chapel, where students go every day at lunch – especially on Wednesdays for hot dogs – has used up the cash it had set aside to provide the lunch program. There's enough money to last until December, but the pastor said she doesn't want to start a school year without being able to finish it.
Pastor Jane Peck wasn't going to let the service end without letting the community know it was coming.
"If it's the case that this church is done, then it's just that the church is done," said Peck. "I'd hate for people to just clue into the fact of our need when they see the for-sale sign on the lawn ... then it's too late."
Currently, Hope Chapel offers drinks and snacks to students every lunch hour, and on Wednesdays, a team of volunteers serves a hot dog lunch to about 300 Collingwood students. There is a regular supply of homemade cookies – often baked by Peck – for the kids to enjoy.
There are three part-time (two days a week) staff positions linked to the program, and between 15 and 20 volunteers through the week.
The costs to keep all the church-run programs going total about $10,000 a month. Hope Chapel has set a fundraising goal of $60,000, which would take the lunch program through to the end of the next school year.
Until now, the costs of the program have been funded, for the most part, from the proceeds of the sale of the church's parsonage and some donations from the community.
The money was spent without regrets, said Peck.
"We've poured it into the community without hesitation to make this work," she said.
The Collingwood church was slated to close ten years ago.
"At that point, there was nothing happening," said Peck. "But what we've been able to do in the last four years is prove that we're committed to the community ... we're here for people ... I think ... we've been able to show that keeping this place open is a actually a good thing."
READ MORE: 'Hope everyday,' school lunch hour offering now serves hundreds
The lunch program, now finishing its fourth year, is not the only thing that would end if Hope Chapel closed.
The church also has a room filled with clothing and household supplies free to anyone who needs something. A food bank is also kept stocked with no limits on who can access it or how many times they can come. Peck knows a few recent immigrant families who rely on the pantry to supplement their regular groceries.
"We had 15 households access the community cupboard last week," said Peck, noting that's about average.
Some of those families offer to volunteer, and Peck says she welcomes the help sorting and organizing donations.
Peck has been pouring more than 60 hours a week into the programs at the church, with about one-third of that time spent on the six-member congregation. Four members of the congregation live in group homes.
"We are people who don't fit anywhere else," said Peck.
The large building is used every day of the week by many community organizations and groups. The Collingwood Mobile Soup Kitchen has designated space in the basement, regular use of the church's kitchen, and pays no rent.
Journey Community Church, which meets at the Galaxy Theatre on Sundays, uses Hope Chapel through the week for youth programs.
Hope Chapel has a family fun event about once a month, the most recent events included an Easter celebration and a gardening activity.
A local small business, Neecie's Treats, uses the church's kitchen and a space in the basement in exchange for a regular donation.
A new laundry room in the church basement is shared by the user groups and also a few senior ladies who don't have their own machines and can't afford to pay at a laundromat.
Hope Chapel has existed under many names, and always as part of the Evangelical Missionary denomination, in Collingwood for 127 years this July. It started out with a group of ladies meeting in a storefront space.
Peck said she doesn't want to rely on the community funding the lunch program or helping the church forever, just temporarily as they build up the congregation. Ultimately, the goal is for the congregation to support the work the church is doing in the community.
"It's a do-or-die kind of thing right now," said Peck. "And I think there's a natural lifecycle, even to things like churches, where it could just be that this is allowing us to end well as opposed to gasping for breath. Ten years ago, nobody would have missed Hope Chapel at all."
"I think, now, people would miss it."
If you would like to support the school lunch program and the work Hope Chapel does in the community, your donation is eligible for a charitable tax receipt. Visit the Hope Chapel website for donation instructions.
