A Brief History – The Building of a Community Food Centre

The Stop was born in the mid 1970s when an Anglican priest opened the doors of St. Stephen-in-the-Fields Church in downtown Toronto to work with people living on low incomes. In 1982, STOP 103 was incorporated and the parish hall at St. Stephen's was opened three days a week for the distribution of food hampers. The original name, STOP 103, came from its first street address, 103 Bellevue Avenue, and from the commitment of its early volunteers to “STOP” the cycle of poverty (some say it stood for “St. Stephen’s Outreach Program”).

In 2002, our 20th year of anti-hunger and community building work, we re-designed our logo and adopted a new name (The Stop Community Food Centre) that the staff and board felt better captured the breadth and depth of our mandate. The early volunteers who built The Stop’s food bank would be proud to know that their commitment to social justice has blossomed into a community food centre that is a model for others working in the sector.

For the past 30 years, The Stop has been developing programs in response to needs identified by its community:

1985 Moved to Bloor and Christie. Advocacy work (landlord-tenant, welfare, immigration, employment) developed alongside food distribution.

1989 Healthy Beginnings program (pre- and postnatal nutrition and support) established in response to high rates of low birth-weight babies in the community.

1990 - 1994 Large donation enabled The Stop to focus on community economic development. Many community-based businesses were spawned. During this period The Stop also developed non-profit housing to help people struggling with high rental costs. Today START 103 manages 21 affordable apartments in Parkdale.

1995 - 1999 Moved to current site at Davenport and Symington. During this period The Stop began to develop food programming intended to meet not only basic needs but also to help community members build mutual support networks and find their voice on social issues. Community Kitchen and gardening programs were launched, and partnerships with local agencies resulted in a new community dining initiative.

1999 – 2004 The Family Support Program was started, enabling women from Healthy Beginnings who require added support to be matched with a peer home-visitor. The Stop Café and Afternoon Drop-in programs were initiated. The community gardens were enhanced and became part of The Stop’s new Urban Agriculture Program that runs year-round thanks to use of a greenhouse at a local high school. The Stop expanded its space (2002) and staff to better meet the food access needs of Davenport West. Part of this expansion included the building of an outdoor bake oven and a commercial kitchen.

2004 – 2007 The Stop continued to add to its programs and staff, particularly building its emphasis on Civic Engagement initiatives, with the launch of the Davenport West Income Security Council and Speakers Bureau, initiatives intended to bring voices of low-income community members into the media and public policy arena. The Stop hired a ‘food animator’ to join a city-wide animation team to bring our expertise to building food projects in Scarborough Toronto Community Housing buildings.

2008 – The Peer Advocacy Initiative is the latest initiative to emerge from The Stop’s civic engagement work. Staff are working hard to resource and support the efforts of the community sector to push the government on its declared commitment to a poverty reduction strategy.

After eight years of planning and fundraising, the fall of 2008 will see the launch of The Green Barn, a cutting-edge sustainable food production and education facility located in the heritage conversion of the TTC streetcar barns at Wychwood and Christie.