The Mannawanis Native Friendship Centre in St. Paul, Alberta, has brought back its weekly community dinner, serving homemade bannock and stew every Wednesday out of its drop-in space at 4901-50 Street. The meal is free and open to anyone who walks through the door, regardless of income.
“Newly started again is a weekly community dinner,” reads the centre’s programs page. “Every Wednesday we will be giving the community a taste of homemade bannock and stew. The soup kitchen is open to everyone. It doesn’t matter what kind of an income you have.”
The dinners are part of a broader effort to fight food insecurity in the area. The centre also runs a food bank on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., with daily bread donations supplied by the St. Paul Co-Op on a first-come, first-served basis. Weekdays, the drop-in is a place to grab a coffee or snack and connect with neighbours.
Executive Director Tanya Shaw, who took the helm in April 2024, oversees a team that serves roughly 1,000 people each month through programs that include youth activities, cultural support, and food security. The relaunched dinners continue the centre’s mission of building relationships across the community, following large turnouts at events like the annual Christmas supper, which has drawn more than 200 attendees.
St. Paul is home to about 1,145 Indigenous residents, making up roughly 16 to 18 percent of the local population. The Mannawanis Native Friendship Centre, established in 1978, remains a hub where people can find a warm meal and a welcoming space without barriers.
