Few if any of us know what it’s like to wonder where our next meal is coming from. It’s likely our biggest meal decision of the week is which new restaurant to try. Fortunately for Greenville, the guesswork is taken out of the midday meal through Project Host Soup Kitchen, directed by member, Sally Green. On a recent visit to Project Host, I didn’t know what to expect as I pulled into the lot where community members waited for the kitchen to open. Once inside, I was overtaken by the savory aromas of baking casseroles and steaming soup, and was immediately welcomed with smiles from a handful of eager volunteers crowded into the prep area. In addition to casserole and soup, customers enjoyed a sandwich, salad, bread and dessert – the type of meal furnished to an average 195 people daily, 365 days a year.
While feeding the hungry is a good thing, it’s not enough according to Mark Bergstrom, chef at Project Host Culinary School. “We feed them everyday and that’s great, but they’ll be back tomorrow,” he says. Whether trapped by circumstances, choices or both, “These people want to see a change in their lives, says Bergstrom, they don’t want a handout, they want a hand up.”
Efforts by Project Host to feed the hungry and break the cycle of poverty and homelessness recently received a boost. Thanks in part to donations from Christ Church totaling $92,000 over the past three years, Project Host was able to expand the soup kitchen to include new space for the Culinary School, now in its fourth year of operation. The new school, which opened in August includes 5000 square feet outfitted with new ovens, stoves, pot and pans, sinks and walk-in refrigeration. Plus the addition allowed for a much needed storage room, a classroom and office space.
At the Culinary School up to 12 students, at no cost to them, go through an intensive culinary program every eight weeks to prepare them for jobs in the growing food service industry. The program, running six to seven hours per day, five days per week, starts with the basics of how to identify tools and flavors, through all manner of knife cuts and cooking and presentation techniques. Upon completion of the program, graduates are prepared and certified to interview with employers like hotels, grocery stores, country clubs and restaurants.
Bergstrom says it’s exciting to see someone go from hungry and homeless to holding down a job that allows them to provide for themselves. Green adds, “It’s rewarding to be part of a church that cares for a community and helps people become self-sufficient.” When the values of education, dedication and hard work are instilled as a way of life, says Bergstrom, the ripple effect through generations begins which will stem the rise in poverty. “That’s the way to change Greenville,” he says.
Tina Tarkington Underwood, Missions & Outreach Team
