Warm Food on a Cold Morning

Today we and some other families from church went downtown to work at HopeFaith Ministries, which offers services for the homeless in Kansas City. Volunteers purchase and cook breakfast for 300 homeless or underprivileged people. We decided it was important enough for the kids to miss a morning of school.

After a slow start (we waited in the cold along with the homeless for 45 min because no one could figure out where the key to the building was), we all packed into a tiny commercial kitchen and chaos ensued. Somehow we managed to bake 500 + canned biscuits, reconstitute and heat 20+ gallons of gravy with sausage, fry hashbrowns and open canned fruit in a place that had half a working griddle, a questionable gas oven and a six burner commercial range. Whew! I felt like we were on Dinner Impossible.

It was a great experience to talk with and serve the people. They were all appreciative and the kids filled the plates and handed it to each one who came through the line. It was certainly eye opening to be in a place so different from a nicely ordered (at least on the outside) Johnson County. I hope we can keep involved in this world as the kids grow up.

At the end, Blane whispered to me, "Mom! Can I keep the hairnet and gloves?" Ah, it's great to be six!