 Volunteer
leader Julie Cowan said the group discovered a week ago that they
had no money left. “Some of the older ladies were taking money
out of their pockets to pay for the groceries,” she said.Erica
Hall, who manages the kitchen today, estimated the food costs $12,000
to $15,000 each year.“There’s no schedule of volunteers;
there’s no supply list,” Cowan said. “For 24 years,
it’s always worked.”Volunteers said donations had dwindled
because patrons were more focused on sending aid to places that
endured national disasters, such as New Orleans.The soup kitchen,
independent of the church, relies on large donations and rarely
asks for funds. An article from the Chicago Tribune discussed their
circumstance, the number of donations began to rise.Soup at Six
was established by Mary Gavin, now the managing editor of the Evanston
RoundTable, and other residents, she said.Since then it has passed
through many hands and attracted a growing number of volunteers
and guests to its meals.“I come here sometimes if I don’t
work at 1:30,” she said. “I start preparing the food.
For Thanksgiving, I take the whole day off and we have a big turkey
dinner with the works.”Hall said she often stays until 7 p.m.
to clean up.“All my life I’ve been doing food service,”
Hall said. “It’s a delight for me. I love to feed people.”The
meals are always nutritious but sometimes challenging to prepare
with the limited materials available, Cowan said.Meals include fruits,
vegetables, meat and soup, said Willoughby. A take-home lunch of
sandwiches, fruit, and chips or cookies is also prepared for guests.“All
that stuff, it really adds up,” he said.The kitchen has continued
running and new volunteers are joining the crew.Weinberg freshman
Sarah Green has volunteered twice at the kitchen with a friend.“It’s
an interesting contrast with what we see at Northwestern. When we
come here we see it’s not all like that,” she said.
“It’s good perspective.”Mike Murdock, who has
been helping the kitchen since 1988, said the importance of helping
the hungry keeps him coming back.“When you see how dedicated
our volunteers are, and how appreciative our guests are, it’s
truly remarkable,” he said.
Reach Diana Xin at d-xin@northwestern.edu. article
from here
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