The day-to-day operations of Nellie’s shelter building runs smoothly in a large part because of the efforts of Jamuna Gurung. As a House Coordinator, Jamuna’s job is to ensure our shelter always meets (or even exceeds) the City of Toronto’s Shelter standards for health and safety, while also overseeing the food service department and making sure we have nutritious meals to serve to the women and their children living here. As well, since the start of the pandemic, it’s been her job to make sure there is always enough PPE on hand for staff and residents.
She’s quick, however, to share any praise for her work.
“It’s a team effort,” says Jamuna. “Everyone here works very hard and I’m very grateful to those people who have been on the front-lines with me to work with the residents of Nellie’s. When you work alone, you do so little, but when you work as a team you can do so much.”
Jamuna came to Nellie’s six years ago after studying Food and Nutrition Management at George Brown College. She uses her expertise to ensure food safety protocols meet Public Health Standards and to prepare weekly menus for shelter residents that not only adhere to Canada’s Food Guide but also meet the dietary restrictions of those living in the house at any given time.
“If someone says they have diabetes, we make sure we’re accommodating meals with non-starchy foods and vegetables,” says Jamuna, adding she is a certified member of the Canadian Society of Nutrition Management. “If someone says they don’t eat meat, we make sure that that person still gets enough protein in their diet through plant-based protein and meat alternative such a tofu and legumes.” Before the pandemic, Jamuna also ran series of healthy eating workshops for the women living at the shelter. She hopes to be able to do so again one day in the future.
Previously, Nellie’s only prepared and served dinner to shelter residents, with women using the kitchen to prepare their own breakfast and lunch. However, with social distancing protocols, residents can no longer use the kitchen and we now prepare and serve three meals a day. Women and their children pick up their meals and are encouraged to eat them in their rooms.
Throughout the pandemic, Jamuna’s role has also included additional cleaning and disinfecting (which means purchasing more supplies and coordinating with our cleaning service) and ordering and issuing appropriate PPE for staff and residents. Every effort in this regard has been worth it. While we unfortunately did have two COVID-19 outbreaks (one during the pandemic’s first wave and another during the third wave), everyone recovered and no staff tested positive.
As the move to our new shelter approaches, Jamuna is on the moving committee, making sure everything is in place.
“I need to be familiar with a whole building system and its operations by learning about the health and safety procedures that are being put in there. Moving is never an easy task but it’s going to be really positive that we’ll have more space and we’ll all be under one roof now,” says Jamuna.
“Serving people in need is a very fulfilling experience,” says Jamuna. “I know that Nellie’s is a good place and it gives me positive vibes to know that I’m helping people. That’s the best reward and you can’t get that anywhere else.”
Thank you, Jamuna, for all you do for the women and their children living at Nellie’s.
