Who we are
Community Canteen is a not for profit organisation, which provides assistance to local community members who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
We serve quality meals, using fresh, quality ingredients, that everyone would enjoy eating ourselves at home.
What we do
See us in action
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Our Mission
Our Mission is to provide fresh, nutritious and tasty meals to those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. We believe a healthy, delicious meal provides practical sustenance and helps people with their wellbeing and outlook on life.
In honour of John Hunt
“who dedicated the last 12 years of his life to feeding the homeless, and who did not live to see the formal establishment of the charity which he founded”
Our clients
Our clients include anyone who is in need, including homelessness and risk of homelessness. This means that we see and help a lot of different people. Some of the clients we see will be regulars, who have been coming to us for meals for years. And some clients will be experiencing a range of challenges including addictions, mental health issues, domestic violence, social isolation, childhood trauma and sexual abuse.
How do we help?
With all of these challenges, many of our clients live in a constant state of crisis or uncertainty, and are often moved on, ignored, judged or misunderstood by wider society. By providing a calm, consistent service that is fair, safe and welcoming, we are doing so much more than simply feeding hungry people.
Founding statement by John Hunt
There but for the grace of God go I! There was a time when I thought (as do many other people) that most people who were homeless or poverty stricken had lived indolent lives or had developed some addiction, be it alcohol, drugs or whatever.
True, there were a number of people who suffered from some kind of mental illness, but these, I believed, were a comparative minority.
After I had been providing meals to the homeless and those without sufficient support for three or four years, I began to feel that I may have misconceived the reasons for homelessness so I decided that I should go and stay in a ‘homeless’ shelter and discover the reality of homelessness and poverty. During the next three or four months I learnt two lessons which will stay with me forever:
(1) I had indeed been very wrong in my beliefs as to the cause of homelessness; and
(2) In many respects the homeless and poverty stricken are on the whole far nicer human beings in every respect than those who have ‘made it’ in life.
Broadly speaking the reasons for homelessness and poverty are:
(1) Some sort of trauma which has happened (a broken marriage, a broken home, a long illness which has started the victim on a downhill run and loss of confidence). That trauma creates a sense of hopelessness which is exacerbated by every perceived slight – in a comparatively short time the person loses all sense of pride and hope, and the downhill run becomes never ending and often leads to addiction of one sort or another.
(2) Mental illness is a substantial cause – with the closing of institutions in Australia some 40 years ago there was a period of ‘half-way houses’ which attempted (and were largely successful) in enabling people to become part of communities. Unfortunately, the establishment of such half way houses soon became ‘too expensive’ for governments of all persuasions. People who were mentally ill were, after a period of hospitalisation, ‘let out’ into the community and expected to fend for themselves. They had – and were taught no skills to enable them to support themselves and survive.
(3) There are now large numbers of second and third generation people who, because parents and grandparents have never worked, now have no life skills or incentive to attend school or to learn any sort of trade. (In the hostel at which I stayed, there was one family of four generations. The children were beautiful little kids who were full of life but who had no chance. None of their parents, grandparents or great grandparents had ever worked. I felt sorry for them and arranged for two of the men to have jobs as security personnel at a drop in centre. Neither of them turned up for an interview).
(4) There are some people who have lived lives of self-indulgence and /or addiction, but these are very much in the minority For some twelve years a group of us have been providing lunch for homeless and needy people on weekends and public holidays for a homeless day-time drop-in Centre – the 139 Club at 505 Brunswick Street, Fortitude Valley – we serve upwards of 28,000 to 30,000 meals each year – as well as providing another 2,000 to 3,000 take away meals for those who need them. The takeaways are presently distributed through the Club and through the Holy Trinity Pantry at Fortitude Valley. To date these arrangements have been ‘privately funded’ . I said earlier that the homeless amongst us are ‘much nicer people’ than those who have made it. However, almost without exception they need love of self and until (if ever) they get back on their feet, as much material help as they can get. So much for the past, but what about the ‘Vision’…
John Hunt post-script – This founding statement was written by John shortly prior to his death in July 2008. When John states that the current arrangements have been to date ‘privately funded’, it should be noted that funding was almost entirely provided by John since he started the volunteer groups. It should also be acknowledged that John was tireless in his organisation of volunteers, formation of menus and protocols and liaising with 139 Club staff and committee. In short, John was the backbone of this group. Unfortunately, John did not live to see the formal establishment of this charity which was named Hunt 4 Homeless Co. in his honour.
Note: The charity has been renamed Community Canteen to reflect its main function, however the spirit of John Hunt continues to run through everything that we do.