Oct - Old Ottawa South

Page 8THE OSCARlOCTOBER 2013LOCAL NEWSOut of the Cold SuppersBy Valerie MacIntoshWhat’s for dinner?It’s a question most of us consideralmost every day. An ordinary kindof question while we peruse thecontents of our fridge, or browse themenu at the pub on the corner.But for many people in our city,what’s for dinner isn’t even on theirradar.That’s why dinner once a weekat Southminster United Church inOld Ottawa South is so special, sowelcome and so necessary. Becauseevery Saturday, people seeking a hotmeal, a smile, and handshake, anda warm collegial atmosphere, knowthat when they come to the Out of theCold supper and ask, What’s for dinner?they won’t be disappointed.Because the food is great! A dedicatedteam of volunteers organizesthe menus, makes the shopping lists,buys the food, prepares the food, andserves the suppers ... all with passionand excitement to provide the bestpossible supper hour to the visitorswho come to the Out of the Cold.South Seas pork, four-bean salad,black bean vegetable chili, dilled fish,pineapple upside down cake – onlya few of the favourites lovingly preparedand dished out with pride.And it’s like that every week. EveryOut of the Cold supper consistsof appetizers such as muffins, rawveggies; then a salad; followed by amain course such as a meat dish withstarch and vegetable, as well as avegetarian option; and finally dessert,with coffee, tea and juice availablefrom the moment guests arrive tillwhen they leave. And if there areleftovers, they are packaged up andsent home with guests for a secondmeal the next day. All meals arecreated from scratch each Saturdayin the kitchens at Southminster, andthe ingredients are purchased, notdonated, with two notable exceptions:Life of Pie donates pies once amonth for dessert, and another donorprovides the muffins.The weekly dinner ‘miracle’ hasbeen going on for 15 years, and thisyear Out of the Cold prepares tolaunch its 16 th season. From a pilotproject in 1997 which averaged about30 guests every Saturday, the suppernow attracts anywhere between70 and 90 attendees each and everynight of the season, which runs fromNovember through March, about20-22 weeks per year. To date, Out ofthe Cold Suppers have served over15,000 guests.Who’s in the Kitchen?Southminster United Church isthe home of Out of the Cold, and isresponsible for hosting and coordinatingthe program. But they couldnot do it without the volunteers frommany other churches, non-churchyouth groups like the CarletonNavigators, Scouts/Guides, as wellas community members from OldOttawa South, the Glebe and beyond.It takes 20 volunteers each week torun a supper, and Out of the Cold islucky to have hundreds of dedicated,reliable volunteers who eagerly awaittheir assignments, volunteering asmany Saturdays as they can to bepart of the experience of serving theircommunity.What is less reliable is the funding.Currently the money to supportOut of the Cold is raised primarilythrough fund-raising events by theSouthminster, Trinity Anglican andSt Matthew’s Anglican churches. Outof the Cold also receives financialsupport from some area businesses.For example, my own store, theClothes Secret, donates $5 to the Outof the Cold suppers for every coatwe sell in November. People love theidea that by buying a winter coat theycan support a community service.Coordinators of the program aretrying to maintain the budget goal ofabout $5 per meal, but this is becomingincreasingly difficult. We allknow a trip to the grocery store canresult in sticker shock as the price offood continues to go up. Imaginetrying to feed 75 guests every weekin your own home for $5 a personand you get an idea of the challengefaced by the coordinators of Out ofthe Cold. Having enough cash to putfood on the table is a prime concern.That’s where you can help.A $5 donation buys a hot, healthymeal to those living on the marginsof society, people who could bestbe described as living on minimaland limited financial means, maybehomeless, maybe struggling withaddictions or social situations, livingalone in apartments that consumethe bulk of their income. Out of theCold provides a safe, non-judgmentalspace where people can share conversationalong with a meal.Please help Out of the Cold continueto answer the question “What’s fordinner?” for hundreds of people inour community. Any amount is welcome;for example, a $50 gift ensuresthat 10 people will sit down to supperwith us, and there will be enoughfood to go around. All donations aretax deductible. You can make a cashor cheque donation to SouthminsterUnited Church, noting that fundsare to be directed to Centre 7/Outof the Cold Suppers. Or go rightnow to the CanadaHelps link on ourwebsite (http://southminster.ncf.ca/home.html) and make your donation.Your support and encouragement iswelcome and appreciated.Milano’s Is Now the Only Pizzeriain the Neighbourhood#4440-714In Store PromotIonOn SAle until OctOBer 31 St , while quAntitieS lAStPaper Yard Waste BagFive Packonly$1.99Lawn Leaf rake30” 50% offonly $8 49736 Bank St. at Second Ave. 613 234-6353info@capitalhomehardware.caReg. $16.99#5062-362By Paige Raymond KovachWhen Talaal Baroudi went toCarleton University and lived onRoslyn Avenue, his dad offeredhim an ingenious meal plan. Hepaid Kelly, the owner of SunnysidePizza, $1000 to feed his son untilthe money ran out. Talaal survivedand thrived as he now owns fourMilano’s Pizzerias in Ottawa andManotick – including the locationhe used to get his pizza from on hisway back from Carleton.This summer Talaal bought EZPZ,formerly Sunnyside Pizza, fromTaha Najim.Taha used to work for Talaal athis Merivale location. When Tahabought EZPZ he called his formeremployer for advice and he helpedhim get set up. When the Milano’sfranchisor said they wanted Talaalto find a new location in Old OttawaSouth and the Glebe, he approachedTaha and his business partner Markto sell EZPZ. He gave Mark andTaha some time to make a decisionabout selling their business, as hisnew Milano’s had to be open inthree months. The EZPZ ownersdidn’t want to sell at that time.So Talaal moved ahead andpurchased the former Fida’s Pizzalocation at 44 Seneca.Talaal said there were bad feelingsfor a while, but those dissipated. “Ididn’t see EZPZ as a major competitor:it was not a Pizza Pizza ora Gabriel’s for instance.” Recently,after some discussions and negotiations,Talaal bought EZPZ.“Yes, I’ll be busier and Milano’swill be more profitable, but I offeredTaha fair market value,” said Talaal.“I did not force their hand.”OSCAR made repeated attemptsto contact Taha to confirm details,but was unable to do so.For the moment EZPZ is vacant,and Talaal is trying to decide whatwould be the best fit for the space.He’s been paying the rent on thespace for the last few months. Heis looking at perhaps burrito/tacoplace or a Greek food outlet. He’salso looking at putting in a laundryfacility. “The one thing it won’t beis a pizzeria,” he said.