Friendship Inn needs help feeding thousands this Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving, a Saskatoon charity is taking on an ambitious project and counting on your support.

The Friendship Inn has set a goal to provide 2,500 nutritious meals for those in need on Monday, Oct. 12.

“This is the day we see probably the most people that come through our doors, and it takes us a good one-week lead-up to make sure we have everything organized,” CEO Sandra Kary said.

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The inn will need about 60 to 70 turkeys for the big day.

“To do the many hundreds of thousands of meals that we do per year, we seek the community support to help us do that,” Kary said.

Ongoing challenges

This follows a busy September at the Friendship Inn.

According to Kary, volunteers served a record of over 55,000 meals in a single month.

“The people coming through our doors are clearly in need of our services and in need of the free meal service that we provide,” she said.

“We see families come through, seniors, a lot of people that are probably struggling with homelessness, mental health, and addictions. That’s somewhat been the case for the Friendship Inn for a while now,” Kary added.

Despite this, the charity has noted lots of success stories.

“It’s not uncommon for us to help people to find housing, and sometimes that’s through the shelters or through transitional houses or even into their own apartment or suite. We do see those success stories happen, and sometimes it just takes time,” she said.

How to help

Kary said people can support the Friendship Inn by donating $5 per plate.

Those who want to give beyond a financial gift can also volunteer their time.

“We have a wish list that we send out every Wednesday on our website. Food, finances, and volunteer hours are what keep us running every single day,” she said.

Leading up to Thanksgiving, the soup kitchen is in special need of the following:

• Eggs
• Dark soy sauce
• Teriyaki sauce
• Cooking Oil
• Peanut butter and jam
• Coffee
• Dried seasonings: Garlic Plus, lemon pepper

Links to the inn’s Compassion Project items are also available online.

In 2025, the soup kitchen estimates it served over 554,000 meals, worth more than $2.5 million in food.