A Barrie man who had been battling his retirement home to accommodate his vegan diet is calling a recent agreement made after a meeting with officials a “step in the right direction."
Ryszard Kaczmarczyk has been living at LOFT (Leap of Faith Together) — located in the Simcoe Terrace retirement home on Donald Street — since October 2022.
In an interview with BarrieToday last week, the 63-year-old man explained that despite paying more than $900 for “room and board,” he says the facility was refusing to provide any “plant-based proteins” required in his vegan diet, with the exception of almond milk.
Kaczmarczyk, who receives financial help through the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP), met with Simcoe Terrace management on Feb. 23, which he says have since agreed to rebate him a portion of the fees he pays each month in order to purchase the food he requires.
“There has been progress here. Due to the attention and pressure I've placed upon them here, they've decided to rebate me $150 a month, so I can go out and buy my vegan food and get them to prepare it and cook it," he said. "That's positive progress and a learning curve for all of us here."
A Feb. 23 letter addressed to Kaczmarczyk from Simcoe Terrace general manager Monica Mosher, and provided to BarrieToday, confirmed that Kaczmarczyk had met with Mosher, along with the facility’s food and beverage manager and a LOFT case manager in an attempt to see how the facility could be more accommodating to his dietary needs.
“During the meeting, you informed Simcoe Terrace management that your special food allowance received from the government through ODSP was decreased to $28 per month. Simcoe Terrace was not aware of this decrease prior to the meeting on Feb. 23, 2023," the letter states.
The letter continued by stating that, due to that decrease, the facility would return $150 per month from Kaczmarczyk’s monthly rent payment as a “food allowance” for his vegan diet.
“As discussed prior to you moving into Simcoe Terrace, and again during our meeting on Feb. 23, you will continue to be responsible for purchasing vegan items," the letter states.
During that meeting, Kaczmarczyk and facility officials reviewed a four-week cycle of the current fall and winter menus. Small adjustments were made to ensure he could continue to eat the majority of the side dishes, however substitutes would be made for the main protein for vegan proteins.
“You informed management that you had vegan proteins in your room and did not have reasoning on why you were not providing the vegan proteins to the kitchen,” the letter continued.
Kaczmarczyk, along with his LOFT caseworker and a Simcoe Terrace food and beverage manager, will now meet weekly to review the menu and substitute meat items on the menu with the vegan items he has purchased.
“You indicated it will be a change having to review the menu a few days in advance, but Sam from LOFT informed you a representative from LOFT can assist with planning,” wrote Mosher, who then requested Kaczmarczyk discuss all future concerns surrounding his vegan diet with management immediately to avoid miscommunication in the future.
In a telephone interview with BarrieToday on Friday, Kaczmarczyk said the money he will be getting back from Simcoe Terrace will help cover the cost of his monthly groceries — and that he will no longer have to pay even more out of pocket to ensure he gets the plant-based protein he requires.
“It greatly reduced my stress. I still have to plan meals. I have to sit down with them weekly and plan ahead and figure things out ahead of time, but it’s definitely a huge step in the right direction and I can handle that,” Kaczmarczyk said.
On Thursday, BarrieToday received an email from LOFT Community Services and Simcoe Terrace looking to “address information and provide clarity” on what they called a "rare complaint." The message stated Kaczmarczyk has provided them with limited consent to share information as it relates to his vegan diet and nutritional health.
“As a result, our comments related to Mr. Kaczmarczyk are related only to the support we provide for his nutrition," the message said.
Simcoe Terrace says it has been successfully supporting Mr. Kaczmarczyk with his vegan diet since October 2022: "This plan was developed in consultation and agreement with the client that includes purchasing preferred, specialty food items on his own and providing it to the kitchen staff in advance for preparation.”
“LOFT Community Services and Simcoe Terrace have been in partnership for five years providing affordable housing and personal care to hundreds of vulnerable older adults in Barrie," the message says. "LOFT Community Services provides one-on-one support to individuals experiencing complex combinations of physical and mental health challenges, past trauma, low income and/or homelessness."
The message also says many people receive funding for housing and basic needs, such as food from social assistance.
"These needs are complex and interconnected, requiring complex solutions. Simcoe Terrace provides food services to residents in the same manner as any other retirement facility while catering to individual diets and restrictions," the message adds.
"Due to recent changes with his social assistance funding for food, it led to Mr. Kaczmarczyk’ s frustration and complaint. The matter has been resolved with Mr. Kaczmarczyk’ s diet in collaboration with him."
Since first sharing his story with BarrieToday last month, Kaczmarczyk says he has received several emails from fellow vegans in the community offering support
“It has been positive … and it helped bring attention to an issue that (I) think is important …(but) it’s taken months for me to get to this point," he said.
