Category: Community Outreach

On hold during COVID-19.

Many thanks to Vancouver Coastal Health for its generous sponsorship!

In May 2015, Vancouver Coastal Health and the City of North Vancouver supported an exciting new program at St. Andrew’s called Growing Food, Growing Community. Because of this funding we were able to build an additional five raised garden beds designated specifically to growing produce for use in our community kitchen. The gardens yielded an amazing harvest of beets, lettuce, peas, beans, and basil by mid-July that were harvested just hours before they were served at community meals. Tomatoes and potatoes followed soon. A FoodSafe course, zero waste training, composting workshops, and other food- and community kitchen-related workshops and events form part of the program. As the name implies, new relationships are being formed with neighbours as we grow food together and offer hospitality through our meals program.

St. Andrew’s United Church Community Garden fosters fun in community as residents of North Vancouver and members of St. Andrew’s tend 18 garden beds and a communal herb garden along St. George’s Avenue between 11th Street and the alleyway adjacent to the church.

If you would like to be part of our gardening cooperative, please call the church office for more information.

As in daily life and at parties, good times happen in our kitchen … come join us!

In the Christian tradition, hospitality is a spiritual act. The act of breaking bread is an act that unites all of humankind: there is no culture that doesn’t gather around a meal. At St. Andrew’s United Church, we feel called to offer a community hub centred around feeding and nurturing the body as well as the soul.

A community kitchen is a place to gather and prepare meals together. It can be used for cooking classes, for creating large batches of healthy food in an inexpensive way, and for gathering with friends and community to feast, share, and laugh.

Want to check us out? Drop by the church during office hours, or arrange another time with our Event Coordinator, and we’ll give you a tour. Or come to one of our free community lunches or dinners.

At St. Andrew’s United Church we offer a fully stocked kitchen and dining room that are available for community use at affordable rates. Depending on your group’s budget, you can negotiate a fee from a sliding scale of $40 to $60 per hour, usually based on a 4-hour minimum. That means everyone contributes to the upkeep of the kitchen and everyone can afford to use it.

Anyone in the community can use our kitchen. We have hosted cooking camps for kids, community lunches and dinners, Cooking on a Shoestring workshops, and other programs related to food. Neighbours have enjoyed the kitchen and dining room for family reunions, bridal showers, and birthday parties. In addition, our spacious Friendship Room, with its lovingly maintained wood floors, is a great choice for yoga classes and many other events. Please contact us to learn more and discuss arrangements.

Greater Vancouver Food Bank Hub:
Fresh food with dignity

A light brunch (fresh salads and fruit) is delivered and served to approximately 150 clients of the Greater Vancouver Food Bank North Shore Hub at the North Shore Neighbourhood House on Wednesdays throughout the summer. The ingredients are prepared on Tuesday morning in our community kitchen from 9 – 11 am, put together at 7:30 am on Wednesday morning, and then served from 9 – 11 am.