A father and his children regularly cook and deliver nutritious meals to a hundred homeless people in downtown Montreal, giving them more than a street corner sandwich.
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“I wanted to show my children that you have to take care of others. […] These are very special moments,” says Hugues Breton.
In the spring of 2020, this executive at the helm of a production kitchen at the Center de services scolaire de Montréal, which was closed due to the pandemic, heard from the media that there was no water point in downtown Montréal, the metropolis for the homeless.
“I had the idea of handing out bottles of ice water with my two youngest children. Then we realized that they were really hungry. […] We started handing out snacks but they asked if we had sandwiches. It got even bigger,” explains Mr. Breton.
Mr. Breton, accompanied by Layla, 10, and Tristan, 13, therefore began cooking a hundred meals in their kitchen in Laval and then distributed them in Émilie Gamelin Park, one of the hubs of Montreal roaming.
“The contact with children is different than if I were alone. My daughter, for example, has incredible contact with Aboriginal clientele,” explains Mr Breton.
For the trained chef, sticking to sandwiches is out of the question. Over the months, salads, couscous and Mexican rice have been on the menu.
“Always with meat because they are carnivores,” laughs the 53-year-old.
The latter’s initiative is possible thanks to food and monetary donations, not to mention sometimes reaching into his own pocket.
Unfortunately, their meals, which are offered several times a month, are increasingly sought after by the homeless, but also by those on welfare who can no longer make ends meet.
“Last time we ran out of food,” says Marie-France Kenny, who joined the initiative in February 2021.
Special occasions
The family, accompanied by several relatives, also offers special meals a few times a year to celebrate certain holidays.
“Why not give them chocolate for Easter? Why don’t you give them smoked salmon?” enumerates Ms. Kenny.
In particular, the Faim à l’itinérance group distributed 80 kg of candy to the users of the Bonneau reception center for Halloween and organized a Christmas party for campers in July.
“People told us memories of their childhoods, when they were camping with their parents or when they were young parents themselves. It really came to get her,” recalls Hugues Breton.
meet her
Hugues Breton also took a trolley to walk the streets of downtown, Plateau-Mont-Royal and the Old Port to meet other people who don’t necessarily frequent the resources while roaming.
He manages to distribute between 50 and 80 meals per outing.
“I prefer to drive through the city. We’re really dealing with people who are affected by homelessness,” he says.
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