Community Support Worker

The Community Support Worker - Food Services worker will work as part of a compassionate, tight-knit team to build a community of care with those who are experiencing homelessness. It requires someone with flexibility, interpersonal skills, organizational skills, and communication skills. The successful applicant will have the chance to build skills and experience in leadership, organization, team work, fund raising, and social services.

The Community Support Worker - Food Services worker will be responsible for meal planning, grocery shopping, and coordinating with a team of volunteers and community members in cooking community meals weekly for Sanctuary. They will also participate in other drop-in services and weekly staff meetings.

Sanctuary is a not-for-profit charitable organization and members of the team participate in fundraising for the work of the organization. For the Community Support Worker - Food Services position, this may mean that they are called upon to help, along with other team members, in planning and hosting fundraising events.

The successful applicant will be responsible for cooking a hearty and healthy meal for 300+ people each week (with the help of volunteers). While the meal is important, what is even more important are the community members themselves. We want the kitchen to be a welcoming space where community members who come from different backgrounds, many of which may be vulnerable, are invited in to participate in creating the meal with us. We are a community that desires, as much as possible, to do things (including cooking) with our community, not for our community. You will be a cook, but more important than that, you will be a community-maker. Teamwork and healthy communication are important in this role as we work together in a small, passionate, close-knit team.
- Required Skills_:
You must have a valid G driver's license and vehicle insurance

Access to a vehicle on Tuesdays for groceries and donations pick-up

Willing to complete Safe Food Handlers Certification

Willing to complete Advanced First Aid and CPR Certification

Vulnerable Sector Police Background Check required

Must be able to maintain spending within a budget.
- Additional Beneficial Skills:_

Experience working in a kitchen, meal planning is an asset.

Experience in working with vulnerable populations is an asset (experience volunteering at Sanctuary is especially valuable).
- Outline of Duties:_

Mondays - 7 hrs: staff meetings from 9 -11 am & lunch drop-in from 11 am - 3 pm + 1 hour for clean up

Tuesdays - 5 hrs: consists of meal planning, food donation pick-ups, grocery shopping, kitchen organization & other duties as required (start & end times to be confirmed)

Wednesdays - 8 hrs: cooking/meal prep (with community members and volunteers) from 1-5:30 pm, community care/connection from 5:30-7pm (while eating with our community members) and kitchen clean up from 7-8:30pm.

Sanctuary is a growing organization, and there _may_ be room for this role to be expanded with increased hours in the future.

About Sanctuary:
At Sanctuary, we are becoming a healthy, welcoming community where people who are poor or excluded are particularly valued. Sanctuary London grew out of a faith tradition and these values inform us and the work we do. The successful applicant does not need to have a faith background or tradition, but they must be able to align with Sanctuary's values:

- Dignity_: We believe that each person is created in the image of God and, as such, has the right to be treated with the utmost dignity.
- Mutuality_: We come to our relationships recognizing that each person has gifts to be shared and gifts to be received.
- Inclusivity_: We intend that our community at Sanctuary will be as inclusive as Jesus was in his life.

Simply put, Sanctuary is a diverse community of beautiful and broken people seeking to create meaningful and uplifting connections with one another. In this way, we begin to find and create a sense of 'home' and 'belonging' together. Over the years we have learned that this can be challenging and complicated, and also deeply fulfilling, meaningful, and joyful.

The role offers the chance to work within a close-knit team while also having a degree of autonomy to manage your own schedule and workflow.

You will succeed at Sanctuary if you have these characteristics:

- You are comfortable with change and with dynamic environments. Sanctuary tends towards being a harm-reduction community, and the tension of wanting the best for people while supporting them where they’re at is part of our reality.
- You are a strong communicator. You listen more than you talk, and you want to understand other people’s viewpoints. You are clear in your words, and you are able to convey empathy and conviction.
- You are resourceful. When something doesn't go according to plan, you know how to bring together resources on hand to find a solution.
- You are flexible. Schedules and duties can change