A pair of Edmontonians spent Christmas Eve feeding the homeless. Blaise Che and a friend spent $100 buying chicken dinners to deliver to some of the city’s most vulnerable citizens.
“We went to Walmart and got some food and went downtown and found some homeless people and shared Christmas with them,” Che explained.
“It was beautiful.”
The friends dropped the meals off to people who had gathered at the Bissell Centre, which is a drop-in centre on 96 Street for the city’s homeless. They documented their holiday mission in a video now posted to YouTube and admit they didn’t know what to expect.
“To go up to someone and ask, ‘do you want some food? Are you homeless?’ was nerve-racking. But once we got into giving the food away, most people were really excited and wished us a Merry Christmas.”
One woman danced with joy upon receiving her chicken dinner, but paused to pray before digging in. Others were more subdued, quietly accepting the food.
“Some of them said no to the food, but it was OK.”
Che said he grew up in Cameroon, Africa, surrounded by poverty and homelessness. He said becoming a Canadian opened the door to a better life.
“It was nice to come here and have the opportunity to get a job and go to school and have a nice home. It was nice to give back.”
Che said he hopes to make the deliveries an annual event.
“Actually going out and seeing people that you are helping. Putting a smile on someone’s face is a wonderful experience; it’s nice.”
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