A Soup kitchens normally just provide a hot meal to the public, but one Cambria county food pantry is doing a little bit more than just that.
The St. Vincent De Paul family kitchen not only will provide a hot meal, but will give out extra canned goods and other food items they might have.
All of this while still promoting the local food pantries in the area.
“Our mission is to feed people that are hungry,” said Greg Karcher, the Manager of the St. Vincent De Paul family kitchen.
“So, we have a St. Vincent De Paul page. So, anyone that wants to know what goes on at the kitchen is welcome to look at that,” Karcher said. “I just posted today and yesterday about going to the food pantries.”
Karcher says its not uncommon for people who visit the soup kitchen to also ask for extra canned goods, pastas, and other items before they leave.
“We do give away though. We provide a meal everyday Monday through Friday and then we have canned goods that we give out," added Karcher. "Sometimes we have bread, pasta, all kinds of different miscellaneous things that’s if we get access, we do put out on a free table that we give out at twelve o’clock.”
The free table at the St. Vincent De Paul family kitchen is stacked with canned goods and more – often causing a line to build up.
“Of course the free table, word does get around, people do come back you know so they see it and they know,” said Karcher. “Sometimes people will come down and they’ll be like well I, you know they look at us like that is what we do, is we give out and that’s not really what we’re doing, but we will you know what I mean. We try and help everywhere we can.”
The Shapiro Administration recently awarded 1.6 million dollars to 39 foodbanks, food pantries and soup kitchens around Pennsylvania.
Part of the press release states, “According to Feeding America's map the meal gap, in 2022, more than 1.1 million Pennsylvanians, or 8.9% of everyone in the state, and 13% of our children, may not know the source of their next meal.”
Karcher says this is why they will go above and beyond to make sure the community doesn’t go hungry.
Karcher also says sometimes people from other food pantries in the area will stop by, see how busy the soup kitchen is and comment about how slow business is for them.
“That is one of the reasons I started posted because I get the food pantries that come and say were not getting that many people,” said Karcher. “We mainly offer a hot meal every day.”
Karcher says the St. Vincent De Paul family kitchen is always open to extra donations and help.
If you are interested in helping out you can visit the food pantry or give them a call.
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