By Joe Mancini
Published December 2024
Each year we witness many deaths within the St. John’s Kitchen community. Kelly, Zack and Cookie were three men who were long time contributors to the work of community. Their contributions go back 25 years each, as part of the Job Café, a term we use for our part time work force. Job Café has contributed in hundreds of ways to the Kitchener downtown.
Carl (Cookie) Lace
Cookie was known for his volunteer and paid work at St. John’s Kitchen, where he spent countless hours over several decades. He was known for his easy-going nature and positive presence which brought a smile to the faces of those he served with and those he volunteered with. Many will know of Cookie from his place in front of 256 King each Saturday morning starting at 6:30 no matter the weather or the season, asking gently for money, but always with a smile and ready for a friendly chat. Cookie had several cancers, but he wouldn’t go to the hospital until he was forced to relent. He passed away quickly. He will be remembered as the best snow shoveller, always arriving early to ensure St. John’s Kitchen was ready to open.
Kelly Partridge
Kelly first started on the 43 Queen renovation project back in 1999. He was placed by Developmental Services and all Kelly wanted to do was find a place where he could work and get paid. He was a consistent and trusted construction worker but he was never able to find the full time work he craved. He liked his freedom and we tried to convince him not to leave home. While working at 43 Queen he would like to go live at the House of Friendship for weeks at a time. Yet over time he became trapped by the toxic drug supply. Our outreach workers cared for Kelly these past 10 years, as he became dependent on the drug culture. St. John’s Kitchen was like his home. We were very sad to learn of his death.
Zack Wade
Zack started volunteering while dealing with his homelessness. During this time he managed the showers and laundry as we moved into 97 Victoria. No one could miss how organized and friendly Zack was, and he ran the back end of the Kitchen seamlessly. He was proud to qualify for one of the new units at SHOW housing in Waterloo around 2008. SHOW became Zack’s home and he didn’t visit St. John’s Kitchen with the same frequency as he did when he was without housing. Instead, as part of the Job Café team, he brought his natural work skills to the Kitchener downtown streets where, for over 10 years, he and his friend Shawn patrolled King Street either with their brooms and cleaning carts keeping the downtown clean or as part of the Discovery Team where they walked through the downtown responding to street issues as they arose. Zack died of health issues but even in his last years he still managed a weekly Job Café gig working with Deb as part of the Discovery Team in downtown Waterloo.
