It's a busy day at Siloam Mission as they prepare to serve their annual Easter meal. 

Dozens of volunteers and staff will prepare and serve over 700 community members experiencing poverty and homelessness an extra special lunch this afternoon.

"We're super excited to offer an opportunity for our community members to come together and celebrate Christ's resurrection and all that means in terms of hope and transformation," said Siloam Mission CEO Tessa Blakie Whitecloud.

Tessa says prep for this event, which is one of the busiest meals of the year, has been happening for over two months. 

"We have 750 plates we're planning for, which is 240 turkeys," said Blakie Whitecloud. "I think they were talking about 200 pounds of potatoes, so it's quite a massive undertaking, and volunteers have been making it possible."

The meal will be served to community members, allowing them to celebrate a few moments of normalcy.

"We want to be a place where people come to go through a process to get housed again," said Blakie Whitecloud. "A lot of the folks accessing our services, especially our meal services right now, are, in fact, housed, but the financial burden of inflation and grocery costs means that they wouldn't be able to eat healthy if they weren't eating here."

Tessa says they want people to feel a part of that broader community and like they are deserving and inherently loved.

"For us as a Christian organization, they're created in the image of God, so we want to serve them as we would serve Jesus if he walked through our door."

The Easter meal will be served between 12 p.m.- 2 p.m. today. 

Anyone interested in volunteering at future events is encouraged to visit siloam.ca.