Edmonton’s Pakistani community provides meals for evacuees

Volunteers in Edmonton have been preparing hundreds of meals and delivering them to displaced Northwest Territories residents across the city.

Arriving in Edmonton last week after a wildfire triggered an evacuation order, Nazim Awan, a member of Yellowknife’s Islamic community, said he noticed many NWT families were struggling to access halal and vegetarian meals.

Awan reached out to Pakistani connections in the Alberta city to see if they could help.

“We’re trying to fill a gap because the need is very big,” he said. “Some people told me they actually had not eaten a meal in a day, and they had no money.”

Awan said the Let’s Help Society of Alberta, Islamic organizations and Edmonton business owners promptly agreed to provide 200 daily meals to evacuees over the next few weeks.

The Islamic Society of North America Canada and Islamic Relief Canada are contributing an additional 100 daily meals.

“So far, it’s going very well,” said Dr Malik Asif of the Let’s Help Society of Alberta. “Not a single day missed.”

Awan said volunteers from Yellowknife are delivering meals to more than 15 hotels across Edmonton, as some evacuees are located far from the city’s evacuation centre and don’t have vehicles to drive there.

“The Pakistani and Canadians are amazing people,” he said. “The donors and volunteers are awesome.”

Evacuees in need of meals and other supports can connect through Facebook. People looking to donate or volunteer should get in touch with the Let’s Help Society of Alberta.