Emmaus House is the largest food bank in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It is operated by five churches, namely: The Basilica of St. John the Baptist, The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist, St. Thomas, St. Patrick’s, and St. Michael and All Angels. It is run by a Board of Directors consisting of the parish clergy from each Parish listed above and two elected representatives from each Parish. The Board oversees the operation and makes major decisions regarding the operation of Emmaus House.

Emmaus House is located behind The Basilica of St. John the Baptist – next door to St. Bonaventure’s School.

Each of the above five Parishes also provides volunteers who staff Emmaus House Monday to Friday afternoons.

During 2005 there were 12,540 people served at Emmaus House – of these 9,151 were children. The statistics are always increasing as economic conditions force more and more families to avail of our services.

Emmaus House is one of 57 food banks served by Community Food Sharing. They assist us with a fairly large supply of food. Contributions of money are made monthly by the participating churches. Food is also donated on a regular basis by parishioners. A lot of food is collected from various food drives by schools, Canada Post, The Metro Buses, The Santa Claus Parade, etc. This often means that we have a good supply at certain times of the year – Thanksgiving and Christmas, for example but we often have lean times in between.

The cost of operation of Emmaus House in 2005 was $52,600.. However, with inflation, and an ever increasing number of clients, these costs are constantly increasing. Presently, we are spending over $4000. per month to purchase groceries over and above the food that is being donated. This monthly expenditure is donated by the five participating Parishes.

Personal hygiene items such as toothpaste, soap, shampoo, disposable diapers, etc. are always welcomed. These items are often requested by our clients.