Starting this week in early February 2026, residents in Chatham, Ontario, are gathering at local community centres and churches to share soup and hot cocoa in a series of grassroots support events intended to help neighbours reconnect after a difficult month.
The gatherings follow a challenging January for the community: some high-profile homicide matters experienced procedural setbacks (for example, a Jan. 20 story reported another setback in the Jeffrey Davis case), while other cases advanced — on Jan. 20, trial dates were reported for David William Thomas in the 2022 death of his daughter, Bayli Sellars, with a jury trial scheduled to run Nov. 16–Dec. 18, 2027, and Jan. 4–Feb. 5, 2027, and pretrial motions beginning in April 2026.
Organizers have identified expected locations for the informal meetups including the CK Community Hub, the WISH Centre and Park Avenue Church, and say the gatherings will feature hot cocoa, soup and informal conversation. Reporters should verify exact times, dates and which organizations or individuals are formally hosting each session before publication.
Those gatherings are occurring alongside community-facing work announced by Chatham-Kent Crime Stoppers, which in early January outlined a full calendar of initiatives intended to educate, engage and empower residents. The Chatham-Kent Police Service has also published a series of media releases and daily summaries documenting a busy start to 2026 with multiple arrests and calls for service in the region.
Local food outreach groups such as Outreach for Hunger are established partners in community feeding efforts in Chatham-Kent; organizers say food supports are expected to be part of these informal gatherings, but reporters should confirm which groups will be providing refreshments at specific events.
Local author and historian Fred Osmon, who has written about Chatham-Kent’s homicides, has publicly expressed concern about the community’s image — saying he “didn’t think there was that many” homicides and that he does not want people to think Chatham is a “bad place to live.” Organizers say the informal events will continue through the first week of February to provide a quiet space for neighbours to talk and offer comfort to those affected by recent violence and ongoing court proceedings.
