Since 2021, Operation Feed has been filling bags with food to help vulnerable families in Saint John who are suffering from food insecurity. The charity, which also provides purposes for veterans and first responders following their service, has handed out over 500,000 bags of food in just five short years of operation. Despite the fact the demand for their service is growing, Operation Feed Founder and CEO Patrick Gordon says the group will end its operations at the end of 2026. “One of our food bags cost us roughly $50 to put together when I first started this in 2021,” says the retired Canadian Armed Forces sergeant. “And now those bags are almost $200.” Gordon says their last food order cost $20,000, and the rising food costs are just one of the reasons they will stop serving the community. When Gordon moved the operation to Edith Avenue, he did so with the goal of creating an integrated wellness centre for veterans and first responders, with membership fees helping pay for the food costs. Despite being initially told it would be possible to add a bathroom to the space and investing $50,000 to upgrade the area, the landlords changed their minds. “We just don’t have the funding to be able to move out of this building,” Gordon says. “So, not being able to push forward with that sustainable model essentially crippled us, and now we have to make that hard choice and say Operation Feed will come to an end.” Gordon says “you can’t just bootstrap” the $20,000 needed every two months for food orders. He says despite their efforts, they have struggled to get support from governments and private partners. “We’ve wrote grants, we’ve turned over every single rock, I’ve had meetings with numerous CEOs and big corporations,” Gordon says on his efforts to find funding support. “But like I said, for whatever reason, people can’t seem to see the value in what we’re trying to do and create change.” He thanks Dustin Springer and Tim Hortons, who regularly listed Operation Feed as the beneficiary of the annual Smile Cooke campaign. Operation Feed will use what money they have left in their account to continue serving the community until the end of the year. The group drops its food totes at various schools around the city, as well as at non-profits like the Boys and Girls Club and the Pregnancy Resource Center of Saint John. Executive director of the center Joanne Mullen says Operation Feed has been supporting them since 2024. She says the bags they provided have become something clients rely on. “They’ve just been an essential source of nutrition, practical needs, and meeting food insecurity in the Saint John region,” Mullen says. “Not only that, but they also provide us with a formula which is kind of above and beyond what they were trying to do. It’s going to be a big change for us.” Mullen says she is beyond thankful for Operation Feed. She says the group is a model for what other non-profits should stive to be. Not only will the end of Operation Feed mean less food for vulnerable families, but it will also leave veterans without a place that has become a part of their healing post service time. The mission of Operation Feed is two-fold. One is to feed the most vulnerable people in their city, and the other is the feeding of the mind, body and soul of veterans and first responders. Gordon says Operation Feed has helped give veterans a new sense of purpose following their service, as well as a place to be around people with similar experiences. “I think it will be detrimental to some people’s well-being,” Gordon says. “I know some of the members have advocated to me about how this is one of the only reasons they get up and get out of their house is to come help the community and be surrounded by other men and women that understand them.” “I think that a lot of vets and first responders are searching for that.” While he is disappointed to see the operation end, Gordon says the mission was by no means a failure. “We’ve helped over thousands of people and given out over 500,000 meals,” he says. “I feel very, very good about what I’ve been able to accomplish.” For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.
