#FeedTheHungryFriday

Let's talk soup kitchens for #FeedTheHungryFriday. Soup kitchens popped up in America around 1929 when the Depression was a growing problem. They were run by charities and local churches and served soup and bread. Soup was easy and affordable to serve because water could be added to it in order to serve more people. As the Depression eased soup kitchens stayed around to help serve homeless and struggling families. (source)

Today soup kitchens are still run by churches and charities but generally serve more than soup and bread. The menus have expanded. Because the soup kitchens are run by non-government entities they are always looking for volunteers. (hint, hint)

Several years ago my family and I served at a Salvation Army shelter with a group of people we knew. Our group had complete responsibility for making the dinner meal and serving it to the residents of the shelter. It was a great experience. We did it for about 9 years. It exposed all of us to different people and gave us all insight into the reasons why people ended up homeless or struggling. In short, it ended up benefiting us more than the people we were serving.

I noticed a cool trend a few years ago. These restaurants started popping up. But they weren't just another restaurant. They were dedicated to feeding the homeless in a way that preserved their dignity and offered them a human experience. But they weren't just for the homeless, they were for everyone and they are called Community Cafés. Part of breaking bread and the human experience is doing it with a diverse group of people. At one table you may have people who drive BMW's and have trust funds and the next table might be people who are barely getting their bills paid each month and then there could be homeless people mixed throughout. This brings dignity to some and compassion to others and hope to all.

I love these Community Cafés! What a fun idea - not only does it bring something necessary to our homeless population but it also supports local farmers as all the Cafés source from their local community for food. It's a win-win for so many people! I'm proud to say that my home state of Colorado currently has the second most Community Cafés in operation, five! And one of them is in my town. Woot! Want to know if your state/city has one or find the closest one to you? Click here to check.  

Soup kitchens and shelters have caught onto the feeding with dignity idea.  So those places are starting to revamp their own programs and I'm loving this change as well. Here's the story about just one such place in Kansas City, Missouri - owned and operated by the Episcopal Community Services. (click here and here for the story about ECS)

If you are in Colorado check out one of our Community Cafés:

Colorado Springs
Seeds Community Cafe

Denver Area
SAME Cafe
Cafe 180
GraceFull Community Cafe

Fort Collins
FoCo Cafe