Downtown Mission, Windsor Spitfires serve up Christmas lunch
About 300 hungry people packed into the Downtown Mission for their annual Christmas lunch.
Prime rib and all the fixings were served by Windsor Spitfires office staff — different from the traditional Mission cafeteria-style meal.
Mission Executive Director Ron Dunn said they were serving "all the goodness of Christmas."
The Mission hands out tickets for the event, but Dunn said another 100-150 people show up and hope for a seat.
"Most of the folks who come to us are not experiencing homelessness," said Dunn. "They just have limited resources."
Santa Claus stops by the lunch for a visit and every guest — child and adult — leave with a present.
"We spend a lot of time as a business staff asking our players to be out in the community," said Dan Dobrich, manager of events for the Windsor Spitfires. "This was a way to turn the tables."
The players have already gone home for the holiday, but 13 of the Spits office staff turned up to serve.
"Giving is what it's all about," said General Manager Warren Rychel. "It's really good to see what's happening down here."
One guest, Rob Trevlen, said he was there simply to celebrate the Christmas holidays.
"We're all in the same boat here," Trevlen said.
Dunn said they were "ground zero" for the mental health, housing and opioid crises affecting Ontario.
"Every program that we have has just exploded," said Dunn. "Our food bank is doing 2,000 a month. It used to do 1,100."
Dunn said moving into the current downtown library space should allow the Mission to accommodate more guests for next year's Christmas lunch.
We continue to do the best we can," said Dunn. "It's Christmas after all."
