The Portage Soup Kitchen is holding their annual Christmas turkey dinner today. The soup kitchen opens its doors at the First Presbyterian Church in Portage la Prairie at 11:15 am. A turkey dinner with all the trimmings will be served from 11:30 to 12:30, over the lunch hour.
Soup Kitchen Coordinator Tricia Chiponski says it doesn't matter what time of year it is, everybody still needs a good meal and at Christmas time especially. She says it can be a financially stressful and lonely time for some people in the community and adds this dinner is a way of coming together during a difficult time.
Margaret Dunn, who's also a soup kitchen coordinator, says it's put on by a group of four volunteers from the Canadian Mental Health Association who help out at the soup kitchen on a regular basis. She says they have served the dinner every year they have been with the soup kitchen.
Chiponski says the soup kitchen's biggest need at this moment is volunteers and stresses the commitment is from 10 am to 1:15 pm any day of the week. She says they have had a few months in the past where they had to close their doors because of a lack of help.