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Our Mission Statement:
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The St. Mary / St. Philip Soup Kitchen Ministry’s mission is to feed those who are hungry as an expression of our service to God. We minister to the homeless and hungry not merely to be good citizens; but primarily because we believe that Jesus can be encountered and loved in those most in need, particularly in the poor and marginalized.
If you have any questions, please call 508-839-3993 x10 or e-mail [email protected]. -
Program Update:
We resumed signup for Taco Dinner donations. It's been going well and the slots are being filled up each month. THANK YOU!
We will bring a taco dinner to 3 shelters (drop-off only). We hope to add others once they are accepting meal donations again.
We will continue accepting donations of grocery cards, or cash or checks to purchase grocery cards to send to the programs. Please direct these to the Parish Office at St. Mary's, Attn: Jill Sullivan.
Please visit the Soup Kitchen Table in St. Mary's Gathering Space to review the menus. Your help is needed and very much appreciated!
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Ministry Description:
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WHO WE ARE: The Soup Kitchen Ministry was established in 2001 and with the help of parishioners, it continues to grow and much is accomplished. The ministry fosters an opportunity for participation in outreach within the parishes, and offers those we serve in the community dignity and hope through kindness and warm hospitality. By serving in this ministry, we’ve gained a greater awareness and better perspective on homelessness and hunger, and the real problems and challenges that people face that find themselves in these circumstances.
WHO WE SERVE: We serve our brothers and sisters in need where we find them: Friendly House, Dismas House, Jeremiah’s Inn, Abby’s House, Visitation House, through St. Mary’s Market Sunday Ministry, the Interfaith Hospitality Network, and the Community Harvest Project. We recognize the tragedy of drugs, alcohol, mental illness, domestic violence, unemployment and poverty, and we reach out and feed those in need in Worcester County.
WHEN WE DO IT: The Soup Kitchen currently serves at 5 different shelter/projects throughout Worcester County, and provides over 2,300 meals per year to those in need within the community.ABBY’S HOUSE (last Thursday of every month; food collected on Wednesday)
DISMAS HOUSE (2nd Tuesday and 4th Tuesday of every month)
FRIENDLY HOUSE (3rd Sunday of every month)
JEREMIAH’S INN (3rd Thursday of every month – this sign-up sheet located at St. Philip)
VISITATION HOUSE (2nd Wednesday of every month)
MARKET SUNDAY (food collected weekly, sorted the 1st Sunday of the month at St. Mary)
COMMUNITY HARVEST PROJECT (during their planting, growing, and harvesting season)
INTERFAITH HOSPITALITY NETWORK (IHN) (one week annually, during March)
WHEN WE MEET: The Soup Kitchen members meet the third Monday of the month at 7pm in the Conference Room in St. Mary's Parish Office. Members can also dial in if you cannot attend in person. We have a clear agend and try to keep the meeting limited to 1 hour.
HOW YOU CAN HELP (you will have a positive impact!): You are welcomed and encouraged to contact us and attend a meeting to learn about the ministry and how you can become an integral steward for one or more of the projects we serve. There is also a lot of information contained in these web pages. With your additional help, imagine the possibilities!
Please know that your contributions to this ministry need not be time consuming or require great sacrifice. As little as one hour a month can impact the fight against homelessness and hunger.
• Attend monthly meetings and offer ideas • Become a Volunteer Coordinator• Sign up to provide food item(s) for a shelter • Serve a meal at a shelter• Participate in Market Sunday • Become a Chairperson or Co-ChairpersonHOW DO YOU GET STARTED? Start by saying “YES”! To help this ministry to continue to thrive, new ideas are needed as well as strong enthusiasm and a desire to serve the homeless and the hungry in our community. Now more than ever we need YOU to step forward and participate in order for the St. Mary / St. Philip Soup Kitchen to fulfill its mission!
To get in touch with us:
Phone: 508-839-3993 x 32
E-mail: [email protected]
Or speak with a member of the Soup Kitchen Ministry after one of the St. Mary’s Masses, at the sign-up table in the Gathering Space.
Also check out our Ministry Brochure.
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Where We Serve:
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ABBY’S HOUSE, 52 High Street, Worcester, MA (508) 756-5486
Abby’s House provides emergency shelter and long-term affordable housing to homeless, battered and low-income women and children. The Soup Kitchen provides and shares a lunchtime meal with the women and staff the last Thursday afternoon monthly. Donations are dropped off at St. Mary by 4pm on the Wednesday before delivery. Servers should arrive at St. Mary's by 11:00am on Thursday to go with the coordinator. The house coordinator is Monalisa Murray 508-840-5858..
DISMAS HOUSE, 30 Richards Street, Worcester, MA (508) 799-9389
Dismas House is a re-entry program for formerly incarcerated men. They provide temporary housing and a supportive community to help these men successfully transition back into society. The Soup Kitchen Ministry provides and shares an evening meal with the residents the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays monthly. Donations are dropped off at St. Mary by 4pm the day of the meal. Servers should arrive at St. Mary's by 4:30pm to go with the coordinator. The house coordinator is Jill Sullivan 508-839-9419.
FRIENDLY HOUSE, 87 Elm Street, Worcester, MA (508) 792-1799
Friendly House provides emergency shelter and transitional housing for up to fifteen homeless families. The Soup Kitchen provides a meal the 3rd Sunday monthly. This is a drop off meal. Donations are dropped of at St. Mary by 10:30am the Sunday morning of delivery. One of the coordinators drops off the meal by 12pm. Call them if you would like to drop off the meal instead. The house coordinators are Jim Naff 508-579-2512 and Cathy Quinn-Campbell 508-335-1064.
VISITATION HOUSE, 119 Endicott Street, Worcester, MA (508) 798-8002
Visitation house is a home that welcomes women with crisis pregnancies. Visitation House provides material, emotional, and spiritual assistance as well as the peace of living in a Christian home. The Soup Kitchen provides and shares a dinner with the women and staff the second Wednesday evening monthly. Donations are dropped off at St. Mary by 4pm the day of the meal. Servers should arrive at St. Mary's by 4:30pm to go with the coordinator. The house coordinator is Trish Ross.
JEREMIAH’S INN, 1059 Main Street, Worcester, MA (508) 755-6403
Jeremiah’s Inn is a transitional shelter for up to 30 homeless men who are recovering from substance abuse problems. The Soup Kitchen provides and shares and evening meal with the residents the 3rd Thursday every month. Donations are dropped of at St. Philip by 3pm the day of the meal. Servers should arrive at Jeremiah's Inn by 4pm. The house coordinator is Paula Prout 508-450-2742.
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We also assist other organizations and outreach programs:
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IN the HOUR of NEED (IHN) FAMILY SHELTER , 91 June Street, Worcester, MA (508) 755-2212The IHN Family Shelter provides temporary housing to homeless families. Through this program, families are provided minimum 6 weeks shelter at the home on June Street. The Soup Kitchen provides dinner host and overnight chaperone coverage for 1 week each year in March.
COMMUNITY HARVEST PROJECT, 37 Wheeler Road, N. Grafton (508) 839-7402
The Community Harvest Project, a working farm right here in Grafton, is the sole provider of fresh produce for the Worcester County Food Bank that supplies 140 local food banks in the county. The Soup Kitchen Ministry participates in the working of the farm by providing team leaders who supervise the volunteers who do the farm work (planting, weeding, harvesting, etc.) from April-October.
MARKET SUNDAY, St. Mary Parish, 17 Waterville Street, N. Grafton (508) 839-3993
This ministry collects donated grocery and household products through St. Mary and St. Philip to be sorted and bagged for pick up for families and individuals assisted through the St. Vincent DePaul Ministry. Sorting takes place the first weekend monthly. Food collection is an ongoing weekly process.
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Soup Kitchen Mission – We Believe . . .
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There Are Many Ways to Serve
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