Saige Community Food Share Society started as an idea between Lauren Kirkey and Ryan Hunter after they were approached at an event, by a transgendered woman struggling to access food banks due to identification issues. Lauren had access to food and then Ryan had access to a space. With the help of Bruce Antecol, Tanya Kuhn, the Metro Vancouver Dream Centre and Mandy Hardwick via Art Bank, that idea became a reality in January 2012.

We are a two-fold, nonprofit organization, that uses food rescue to keep edible food sources out of landfills and putting it into the hands of those in our community. As a low barrier, Two-Spirit, Trans and Gender Diverse safe space, we open our doors twice a month to provide fresh produce and baked goods at our food share program. In 2014 we started the Community Kitchen, partnering with local organizers to provide a space for 2STGD individuals to come together to learn how to cook healthy food options on a budget and a space to share a healthy meal with others in the community.

In 2020, we started the Gift of Food program that provides a pop-up food share in the DTES for a SRO (single room occupancy) that specifically houses individuals from the Two-Spirit, Trans and Gender Diverse community. In 2021 we started a Food Forest with some student volunteers and a grant from UBC to start a community garden in Sahalli Park that includes a wheel chair accessible garden bed.

We focus on creating relationships with our patrons that may not otherwise have social outlets. We have made a real difference in helping members of our community have enough to eat, no matter what challenges they are facing. We specialize in food recovery that is 90% fresh produce and baked goods donated from local organizations as well as staple products. Everyone has the right to access healthy food options with dignity and pride.

Lauren Kirkey went on to study to become a Minister in The United Church. As the first ordained, openly trans minister in The United Church of BC/Yukon, Lauren uses her platform to promote inclusion for all, in and out of faith spaces. She can also be found hosting events or performing around the city in her drag persona, The Reverend Whoopsie Daisy. If you would like to reach her,  she is best reached through Facebook Messenger as Lauren Kirkey or on Instagram as @lifelonglaurener or @therevwhoopsiedaisy

Two-Spirit, Transgender and Gender Diverse individuals are a high-risk group due to challenges regarding access to medical care, both gender-related and non-gender related. Their health is also challenged by higher levels of violence, lack of social support, difficulties obtaining employment and housing, in addition to mental health conditions and suicide, brought on by the stress of multiple experiences of discrimination. Even when they are able to gain employment, they tend to have a lower income on average than non-transgender individuals with similar education levels, due to lack of opportunities.

A young transgender woman named Saige, who had been rejected by her family and seeking food accessibility, approached the volunteers at a 2STGD holiday event in 2011. She came to them and described the problems she was having accessing food through regular means due to identification issues, unstable housing, and harassment. She suggested the possibility of a food bank specifically for 2STGD individuals. The difficulties she was having were subsequently confirmed by a number of other trans individuals in the community who had had similar experiences. Shortly after making that suggestion, the woman took her own life, as she was unable to cope with the ongoing experiences of stigmatism and discrimination. Our organization is named the Saige Community Food Share Society in her honour.

We changed our name from Saige Community Food Bank to Food Share in 2024. Calling it a food bank no longer describes what we do, as we are so much more. The term food bank carries a lot of stigma for those accessing it.  We want to ensure that everyone accessing our programs can do so in a safe environment with dignity and pride. We have grown from a simple food bank to a non -profit that offers the opportunity for community to help community. Our programs include sharing healthy food options, resources, training opportunities, community kitchens, fundraisers, 2SLGBTQIA+ events, urban gardening and mobile food distribution.  We are a volunteer run, joyful crew who truly enjoy serving our community and take pride in doing it well. The sharing of food is a timeless and universal tradition that brings us all together.