Community members open up while building puzzles together at the Mustard Seed

People struggling with addiction, homelessness and hunger have been stopping by the Mustard Seed's community centre to piece jigsaw puzzles together.

The 50th puzzle is soon to be mounted on the Mustard Seed’s puzzle wall at its Community Impact Centre in Old Strathcona.

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The centre invites community members of all walks of life for coffee and snacks while the building puzzles together.

“We find that when people are working on puzzles, it’s easier to to talk, to have a conversation,” said Reverend Eric J. Kregel. “When you have a conversation with someone nose-to-nose, it’s a little more formal, but when you’re side-to-side, working on puzzles, folks are able to chat and communicate and find out what their needs are and how we can help.”

Serving as a hub for several supports, the centre offers job coaching, housing supports, assistance accessing government supports as well as addiction and sobriety.

“It’s hard to find out where they are, and the best way to find out what’s best for folks and what their solutions are is by having a good old-fashioned conversation over a puzzle,” said Kregel. “Once people build trust, then they can start imagining what some of the solutions can be and what’s available to them.”

Puzzles have been donated by such groups as the Strathcona Baptist Church, St. David Anglican Church, St. George’s Anglican Church and Holy Trinity Edmonton.

It’s taken a little more than two years for the centre to get to 50 puzzles.

Kregel said the centre also welcomes those seeking respite from the cold where they can warm up with a coffee and a snack and, perhaps, a puzzle.

With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Marek Tkach