Cape Breton soup kitchen founder remembered for dedication to God and the poor

Melvin Sangster, co-ordinator of Harvest House Ministries, a charity in Glace Bay and North Sydney, N.S., that supplies homeless people with hot meals and clothing, died Friday.

Sabrina Sangster said Monday her father died in his sleep at his home in Donkin, just outside Sydney. He was 63.

He dedicated his life to the service of others, she said.

"I would like people to remember that Dad, he dedicated his life to the service of God and others. He was always so giving and he would do whatever he could to help anybody, in any way," she said.

"He was never afraid of what people thought about him."

Used their truck to serve the homeless

Sangster ran Harvest House with his wife Hazel since it began in Cape Breton in 2001, and was working on moving the soup kitchen into St. Leo's Church in Glace Bay.

​Harvest House was forced to leave its Main Street building last summer due to structural problems.

The Sangsters had operated from a big, red truck since then, bringing food and clothing to a growing number of clients. The couple delivered Christmas dinners and gift certificates to 80 people on Christmas Eve.

Community support needed to carry on

The immediate future of the ministry and outreach program in Cape Breton is unknown, said Cal Maskery, executive director of Harvest House Ministries in Moncton.

He said Sangster's death is a shock.

"I don't know if Hazel will carry on. If not I need to come up and identify someone in that community that would help carry that on."

But, he said, "The needs are great. We continue to get men here in our addiction recovery program, in Moncton, [who are] from Cape Breton so we know the needs are everywhere.

"For the community itself in Glace Bay, the needs have shown themselves to be consistent so we would love to see that continue, we just need support from the community."

'I still can't believe he's gone'

Lawrence Shebib, co-chair of the North Sydney Food Bank, said Melvin dropped by every week to pick up groceries for clients.

"He would come here every Thursday to pick up supplies from us, things he would bring to his clients to Glace Bay and up the country," Shebib said. "He was always the same way, a very pleasant guy."

Shebib said it is "hard to get your head around it. I still can't believe he's gone."

A funeral service is being planned for Sangster in his hometown of Coddles Harbour in Guysborough County.

A memorial service will be held in Glace Bay at the end of January.