Disciples’ Kitchen to offer meals on Mondays

By Sage Merritt

Published: May 29, 2008

The Disciples’ Kitchen was founded in spring of 2007 as a soup kitchen ministry at Second Presbyterian Church in Waynesboro, serving free lunch on Tuesdays and Thursdays to anyone who needed a meal.
Now, the program is expanding from two to three days weekly, offering lunch on Mondays as well as Tuesdays and Thursdays, beginning June 2.
According to Second Presbyterian Pastor John McDonald, the demand for the Disciples’ Kitchen’s free lunch program has increased steadily as the summer months approach — but so has the number of individuals volunteering to help with the program.
“We’re meeting three different needs here,” McDonald said. “Number one, physical hunger. We’re feeding people who wouldn’t otherwise get a meal. Number two, it’s an opportunity for some folks to get out and see other people, folks who might be able to eat at home but need to fellowship with other people. Number three, it’s an opportunity for people to help people. And that’s one of the things we didn’t anticipate, that a lot of people out there would want to help, they just need an opportunity.”
Volunteers from area churches and civic organizations operate the Disciples’ Kitchen on a rotating schedule. The soup kitchen ministry began with seven churches, and now includes 20 churches and civic organizations.
McDonald said that the extra day will allow the Disciples’ Kitchen to meet increased demand from youth who normally eat reduced-cost or free meals at school. During the summer months and other periods when the public schools are not in session, the number of attendees at the soup kitchen increases.
The Disciples’ Kitchen operates from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on the days that it opens its doors. Anyone interested in more information or in volunteering for the soup kitchen can contact Second Presbyterian Church, located at 133 N. Delphine Ave., at 943-3211.