Imagine going 24 hours with nothing but a brown paper bag to sustain you. For thousands of Winnipeggers, that’s not a challenge, it’s daily life.
Agape Table, a Winnipeg non-profit, serves hundreds of bagged lunches every weekday to those who don't know when their next meal will come. CHVN morning show host Sylvia St. Cyr got a taste of that reality when she committed to surviving on just one of those lunches for 24 hours.
Agape Table in Winnipeg is committed to helping people who don't know where their next meal is coming from enjoy a nutritious bagged lunch, no matter who they are or their situation.
"Pre-COVID, we served people differently," says Aaron Scarff. "To see everybody sitting down, enjoying a meal together, it was fantastic fellowship. It was awe-inspiring to witness it and be a part of it."
Scarff started as a volunteer at Agape Table in 2019 and quickly knew this was where he wanted to be. Scarff has been working at the non-profit for the past 6 years.
"With COVID, we had to change the way that we served. That transformed into a bagged meal."
When Agape Table started handing out bagged lunches, they were serving roughly 300 people from Monday to Friday. As of June 2025, they serve just over 800 guests a day.
CHVN Bagged Lunch Experience
On June 16, St. Cyr agreed to eat the bagged lunch from Agape as the only food for the day.
Each brown bag contains a sandwich, homemade soup, some crackers, a fruit, and a yogurt.
"We want to make sure our guests are given enough food, because they don't know when their next meal is coming," says Scarff. "For us, we're very fortunate and we're on a routine and when we're going to eat next. Agape stands for unconditional love, so anybody that comes up and needs food, that's what we're there for."
If the charity has extra fruits and vegetables that day, they also offer them to their guests alongside the lunch. When people are in need of other things, such as a pair of socks or hygiene products, they offer that too.
"There are certainly unhoused that come and use our services. When Ukraine first started, we saw a lot of refugees. And we have a lot of immigrants and low-income. Those people who have to make a decision, whether it's going to be food or rent. Food security in Winnipeg is a real issue."
People interested in donating food, money, or their time through volunteering can find more info here.
Listen to the whole conversation with Aaron Scarff below.