Hello, Let’s Eat!
With warmer weather right around the corner, the City of Edmonton wants you to break bread with your neighbours this summer! The newly launched Hello, Let’s Eat! campaign is encouraging Edmontonians to come together and connect in their community.
Hello, Let’s Eat! is a collaborative effort between the Hello, How Are You? campaign, fresh – Edmonton’s Food and Urban Agriculture Strategy, and River City Events. In this pilot program, the City of Edmonton is making resource kits available to community members hosting a meal with their neighbours.
Hello, Let’s Eat! provides resources to organizers by loaning kits to participants. Each kit includes:
- cutlery
- plates and bowls
- pitchers, mugs and cups
- tongs,
- serving spoons
- place mats
Tables and chairs, while not included in the kits, can be provided upon request. Each kit contains equipment to support a group of 24 neighbours. Food and the meal itself, however, are not included.
More information on Hello, Let’s Eat! can be found here. Those interested in participating can submit the application for the kits here.
Like me, our current City Council members are committed to focusing and strengthening communities in our city. These efforts are reflected in the initiatives that Councillors will be spearheading over the next 4 years of our term. From my Food and Agri-Business Diversification Initiative, to Councillor McKeen’s Urban Isolation Initiative that I’m a member of, as well as Councillor Walters and Councillor Dziadyk’s Community Hubs Initiative, there are renewed and concerted efforts to better support and celebrate our communities. Edmonton has a history of vibrant and connected neighbourhoods and Hello, Let’s Eat! seeks to bring us back to these roots.
Sharing a meal is a universal act that is important to building relationships with people. Simple, yet sacred, sharing food enriches our communities as it creates a time and space where strangers become friends. Community dining events help foster social connections, which supports community resilience. Programs like Hello, Let’s Eat! can play an important role in strengthening the social fabrics of our communities by bringing neighbours together.
So, my fellow Edmontonians, take advantage of Hello, Let’s Eat! this summer and enjoy a meal and the company of your neighbours!
