A Holiday Thank You
Thanks so much to the Brentwood community for helping last year during Christmas and the holidays in so many ways. The Christmas Market and Food Drive helped get the season started and re-stocked the Little Free Food Library heading into winter. Also in November, Di Wu Munk and Fatima Majoka hosted a candle painting workshop, helping start the holiday season.
It was the third year that the bakers and artists at St. Jean Brebeuf School brought some Christmas joy into Carroll Place with cookies and cards for our seniors. We had amazing response to the book and game drive for Carroll Place and to the urgent needs drive for the Mustard Seed.
Horizon Church coordinated 17 Christmas hampers across Varsity and Brentwood, thanks so much for doing this for our community, and thank you to those who contributed to the two hampers that Brentwood Cares took on.
Thanks to all those who supported CBC Make the Season Kind, tremendous need at the Food Bank, and special thanks to Laura and Chris Grant for coordinating the bike for the auction, it raised $2,000.
New members always welcome. Meetings are irregular, as needed. Interested in helping build our community, have an idea to make Brentwood better? Please reach out to [email protected].
Cam Howey
The Little (Now Big) Food Library Welcomes Community In 2025
It has been many years since I first heard Jewel’s song “Hands,” and it left its impression on me, particularly her reflection that “Only Kindness Matters.” I wondered, does kindness hold such an important space in our human interactions? More than 20 years later and now teaching ethical social work practice at the University of Calgary, I can’t emphasize kindness enough.
2024 feels like it’s been a really tough year, locally and across the globe, as far too many people live a daily reality of economic insecurity, violence, and other barriers to well-being. Some among us, or those who we love, may also be navigating other challenges that can feel like heavy burdens. At these times, I am reminded that kindness is an essential companion of fairness, compassion, and a belief in our shared humanity. Like our soaring grocery prices, these values can sometimes appear out of reach when we spend too much time on social media. But the kindness within and among us is easy to see in the Brentwood Food Library, now into its fifth year. Our community food box continues to be a space where kindness is practiced, and compassion is grown.
Last year our Food Library experienced several notable moments. One occurred in early November when I received a call from the United Filipino Entrepreneurs Association asking if we would like them to build us a larger food pantry. Within two weeks of that call, our new box was standing, with plenty of room for non-perishables, as well as the weekly deliveries of bread and specialty items that pop in now and again, such as the fruits and veggies of summer and fall harvests. A special thanks to Anthony, Rodel, and their team for this community service.
In December, good friends Joan and Randy Farkas from the community of Tuxedo held a wonderful fundraiser for our Food Box, raising over $2,400 in food and gift cards through Randy’s amazing cooking and the donations of 30 women foodies interested in a good cause. With all this extra in hand, our Brentwood Cares team hosted a Free Meal Giveaway on December 23 at our family home for anyone in need, no questions asked. The delicious meals were supplied at a discount from our friends at the Italian Supermarket (thanks to Marco and his team!). My teen Parisa, along with friends Sebastien, Emilio, Leroy, Maile, and Shayna, filled the house with laughter as they baked muffins for the incoming visitors, some of whom stayed for tea and a chat. Lou from Carroll Place dropped by to shepherd our teens to the residence to pass out a stack of meals. Friends prepared little gift bags with warm socks and Christmas chocolate that were given out with the warm meal. Stories and laughter were shared, along with the good feeling of making a difference, even a small one, before going off to our own Christmas and holiday preparations.
Hope and humanity can always be found in the smallest acts of kindness, and I am blessed to experience these every day. It would take several pages to share the many stories of our Elves and Secret Santas who support our (now) Big Food Library throughout the year. You know who you are, and I am grateful.
Liza Lorenzetti
On behalf of my family Arya and Parisa, and the Brentwood Cares team.
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