Long pov By Henry Bury Frances Ann Mendes always had asmile and words for visitors to the GI Food Bank and Manges Cal Cafe over the past poet: ler smile will te iceman of St. rot Miche Church — even ence will be sorely Seer by C) ations. The 74- -year-old Mendes volun- teered right up to the last few weeks of her life. She died of can- cer Dec. 10, 2 2004. The Gleaners Food Bank has honoured Mendes by dedicating a plaque BY, her memory on the wall in the c The plague cone a photo- graph of lendes. oe due, Vere Mcln- hand fo tor the the unvelliae one mom wor ea rassed, ee: Plessead she said. also presented t oe os with a watercoloeal painti eae barn in her ee Feel quite honoured and I . think id be a little embar- Pease are happy to see ashe | loved barns el coun- fopsaph | here she cs “And I tryside and I'm tre Sak this in her honou been a lifelong volunteer, starting a her native West Indies and later “She had good faith in God and she felt compelled to help the less fortunate ... that’s ppatal of who my mother was,” she sai Mendes moved to ih McNabb Towers in Belleville 14 years ago salvation Meals and the Belleville pregnancy crisis centre. She began with Gleaners in the mid-1990s and switched oe eis four years ago. Both are located in the basement of St. “Michael's Church. Quinlan said volunteers: don’t come any better than Mendes. “T was celientes to see Frances come in the door as a volunteer,” paid the the director of operations for leant “She bon a reliable and ae prs Se and has been right to the Danuta Jagaciak, the cafe's co- ordinator, knew Mendes for the past ees became good fi all the volun- 's became st think all the friends of the ¢ Frances’ pho- ow- that we still talk about ifs and remember her.”