Whistler Blackcomb (WB) is unveiling a new Shoulder Season Community Meal Program to meet the needs of locals who may find themselves falling on hard times.
For one night a week between May 1 and May 29, Merlin's Bar and Grill will play host to an accessible hot meal for the affordable price of $10 per person (taxes included). WB's Food and Beverage division, led by Wolfgang Sterr, is at the head of this undertaking.
Through community stakeholder meetings and activities over the last year, WB identified areas of need facing Sea to Sky residents. Sterr and his colleagues on the company's leadership team—COO Belinda Trembath, Josh Buchanan, Kate Roddick, Brian Sudaholc and Kyle Murphy—became aware of specific food insecurity issues as they volunteered at the Whistler Food Bank this past winter.
"It's through conversations with the Whistler Community Services team that we understood: the need for the Food Bank actually ramps up in the spring and fall, because the disposable income of individuals in town kind of shrinks a little bit until guests come back and full operations are resumed," Sterr explained. "The idea came up that we could host community dinners. We wanted to make it affordable and cost-neutral, so that way we lend our expertise to buy the food, cook the food, and serve the food.
"There's no profit being made. As well, we donated 50 tickets to the Food Bank so they have the ability to give those tickets to the most in need."
'This is about doing right'
When rebranding known establishments like the Horstman Hut, Sterr is focused on providing guests with a memorable and tasty dining experience. As far as the Shoulder Season Program is concerned, nutritional value becomes a priority: soup or salad, protein, vegetables, starch, and dessert every night.
"When we developed the menu, I said we need to make sure we provide nutritious food," Sterr elaborated. "It needs to be good protein, such as fresh chicken breast. When the team came back and they had frozen vegetables on the menu, I said, 'no, absolutely not.' Let's make sure we have real carrots and beans and whatever is available, because we want to make sure that individuals are getting value and nutrition from this meal. That is what they're not able to afford because of their job situation."
Two rotating menus have been prepared, both capable of accommodating people with dietary restrictions like vegans, vegetarians and those who are gluten-free. Individuals of all ages are welcome to take advantage of the meals, and takeout options are available.
Sterr has also challenged his peers in WB's other divisions to co-host dinners, with their respective teams on hand to welcome guests, check tickets, serve food, clean and build relationships with everyone who shows up.
While Phase 1 of the program concludes at May's end, WB plans to revamp it based on user feedback and operational lessons learned. If the initiative proves successful, a second phase with one to two extra meal nights per week and engagement from community partners is in the works from Thanksgiving to mid-November.
"I've already talked to the GM of the Westin and the GM of the Hilton. They came up to me after we announced [the program] to the community that they would be interested in participating," Sterr revealed. "We would look to the fall, when the season goes from summer to winter, for other businesses like them to put their own dinner on one specific weekday for probably four to five weeks.
"This is about the community. It's not about WB. It's not about WB employees. This is about doing right, which is one of our core values. It was incredible, the feedback we've been getting from the Whistler Community Services team as well as from stakeholders we meet regularly with. When they heard we're getting this initiative up and rolling, they all felt like it was a cause to get behind."
