A local church took to the streets Saturday night.
Grace Place serves hundreds of meals every week through its storefront on Simpson Street.
“It’s a street church where we feed people and look after them,” Pastor Gary Macsemchuk said.
But the place that helps so many needed help themselves with about $25,000 in kitchen renovations. On Saturday evening around 130 people took part in the Coldest Night of the Year walk in order to help out.
“It looks like we’re going to make our goal,” Macsemchuk said. “It’s great to see. This is really about unity in Thunder Bay.”
After raising pledges, people either walk two, five or 10 kilometres. While this is the first walk in Thunder Bay, the Coldest Night of the Year started three years ago and now takes place in 37 cities across the country. This year the walk raised more than $1.3 million for poverty reduction.
When he heard Grace Place needed support, Grassroots Church’s Claude Wyspianski gathered 15 people and their families to the cause. He said Grace Place means a lot to so many people.
“It’s just a great place, really it is,” Wyspianski said. “It’s great to see such a great crowd here today. It’s amazing.”
