Thanks to the committee for having me.

My name is Shawn MacKeigan. I am the associate executive director of Mission Services of Hamilton. Mission Services is a multi-sector, not-for-profit social service agency located in Hamilton, Ontario. There we support individuals navigating some of the most challenging circumstances they may ever face.

For nearly 70 years we have supported individuals and families by offering a host of services and supports, including those for housing and homelessness, gender-based violence, community-based addictions treatment, youth services and, additionally, we operate one of the largest food security programs in our community, where we support thousands of unique individuals and families each year.

At the centre of Mission Services food security initiative is our Good Food Centre program. This program helps ensure that people receive nutritious and culturally appropriate foods and provides a wide range of items, including fresh produce, dairy, proteins and pantry staples, ensuring a balanced diet for those in need. The Good Food Centre operates as part of the broader food network within our community, although the scale of our service is significant, given that our physical resources include a large warehouse and a sizable food staging and customer service area.

While we recognize and understand the importance of sustaining this vital resource, we are not alone in having observed significant year-over-year increases in the demand for that service. In the past year, we have observed a 30% increase in the number of new service users, and nearly 40% of the total individuals supported through our Good Food Centre are children.

Mission Services also delivers after school youth programs, spring and summer break camps and food-specific programming for youth. These footprint youth programs are tailored for students in grades 6 to 9, where our goal is to empower young people to make healthy choices and to pursue post-secondary education after completing high school while recognizing the important connections between hunger and learning.

A collaboration between Mission Services of Hamilton and Mohawk College aims to create positive attitudes about education among kids who may not believe that post-secondary education is an option for them. These programs offer interested youth in our inner-city neighbourhood healthy after-school snacks, nutritious hot meals, cooking and gardening classes, homework help as well as a large recreational component. The program is youth led and strength based, where we focus many of our activities on mental and physical well-being.

Moreover, Mission Services plays a crucial role in advocacy and community partnership. We work collaboratively with other local organizations, government agencies and community stakeholders not only to tackle some of the most immediate needs but also to help create better conditions to coordinate access to the right supports at the right time and, further, to address the root causes of food insecurity such as poverty, social and structural inequities and access to healthy food.

We understand that the positive impacts of meaningful food security programs on families are profound and multi-faceted. For families struggling with food insecurity, these programs provide a critical safety net that alleviates the stress and anxiety associated with not knowing where the next meal will come from. We understand that this stability allows parents to focus more on other aspects of family life such as maintaining stable housing, pursuing employment and/or educational opportunities and providing a supportive home environment. Children benefit immensely as well, as consistent access to nutritious food supports their physical growth, cognitive development and academic performance. Overall, robust food security programs strengthen families, promote healthier lifestyles and contribute to the social and economic well-being of the entire community.

Together we believe that we can take steps to ensure that everyone in our community has access to the nutritious, healthy food that they need to thrive.

Thank you.