The owners of a new food hub in the central part of Sault Ste. Marie are helping ensure no resident goes to bed hungry.
Nicole Dyble and Brenton Ellis opened the doors to Full Circle Mutual Aid Hub last November as a pilot project that provides residents with healthy and readily available nourishment.
Open two to three days a week, the Wilson Street space features a community fridge and pantry with a variety of free food items, including fresh and uncut produce, as well as dairy, meats, snacks and non-perishables.
“The space is open to everyone,” Dyble told SooToday. “We’re really trying to create a community hub that when people come to get food, there’s no questions asked and no judgment. Give what you can, take what you need is the mindset. Everyone can use some help sometimes.”
Eyeing the prospect of opening a community hub for some time, Dyble and Ellis were made aware of a funding opportunity through the Algoma Community Foundation last year.
That foundation provided the couple with $7,000 in pilot funding for their first three months in operation. Since then, Full Circle has been operating solely on community donations.
Thanks to consistent food contributions and volunteerism efforts, the non-profit organizers say they’ve been off to a fantastic start in their programming.
“We’ve been able to pay rent on the space and stock the fridge so far, which has been great,” Dyble said. “A couple weeks ago, we pretty much ran out of food, but folks stepped forward and our shelves were stocked again.”
“We have a few people who have been volunteering to help run the space every once in a while, so that’s been a big help because both Brenton and I have full-time jobs,” they added. “It’s a mutual aid hub, so we want it to be community-run, but we’re also trying to keep it manageable and sustainable.”
Dyble and Ellis go shopping at the grocery store once a week to replenish the items in their fridge, maintaining a focus on fresh and healthy food as much as possible.
But as shoppers know all too well, it can be tight to stay within budget.
“We’re shopping the sales for sure; the dollar definitely doesn’t stretch as far,” Dyble said. “But we’re still getting the produce, dairy, and bread — those kinds of staples. We’re always trying to get good quality stuff.”
Every two weeks, the owners of the Full Circle hub pay $50 to a local farmer at the Soo Market for any remaining food that is left over from the Saturday vendor show.
“That’s been really helpful,” they said. “We try to support the local food industry as much as we can.”
Averaging between five to ten clients each time they’re open, Dyble admits they’re a smaller hub in comparison to others, but they note that the varieties of options they offer is unique.
“We’re not necessarily big enough or resourced enough to be like a big grocery shop for anyone,” they said. “But we’re looking to supplement for what folks can access at the other emergency food places. We got this fridge donated from Sunnynook Farms, so we really like to focus on fresh food, fresh uncut produce, and things that people generally wouldn’t always be able to access at the food bank.”
In addition to serving as a food hub, Full Circle provides personal care items and toiletries, as well as pay-what-you-can clothing items, harm reduction supplies, and an artmaking drop-in.
“Brenton is a visual artist, so one day a week, there’s open artmaking and free materials for all ages,” they said. “People can come make whatever they want on Sundays from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m.”
While they’re focused on supplying high quality foods, Dyble noted they gladly accept donations of canned foods and the “more typical items” locals would find at their grocery stores, such as non-perishables.
“It seems to be easier getting those kinds of donations, although we are very open to getting donations of fresh food too,” they said. “But we want to keep everyone safe. We accept fresh, uncut produce, and we don’t take prepared foods unless they’re packaged prepared foods.”
“We like the fun stuff too that people wouldn’t necessarily get; food that makes people feel good like snacks and whatnot,” they added.
Located at 285 Wilson Street, Full Circle accepts food donations and personal care items in-person, and they also appreciate e-transfers made to [email protected].
The hub’s calendar and hours of operation can be accessed by visiting their Facebook page.
Dyble wants to remind residents there are two flights of stairs to get to their space, so they’re happy to bring items down to clients if they’re unable to make it up.
“We feel pretty privileged to be able to run this space, but it takes a community — we’re helping each other,” they said. “We’re not doing this alone, we’re not trying to save anyone, we’re just trying to be a conduit where our community can take care of one another.”
