Food for the soul: Food Services at Dorothy Day
Dorothy Day's Food Service is undoubtedly our most well-known service. This year, we have reached more unhoused community members than ever before through our community meal services and outreach services.
Richard, a regular participant and recipient of our meals, prefers our meals over anywhere else.
Dorothy Day has some of the best meals I've ever had," Richard said, "There are a lot of food resources in Berkeley. Still, I always come to Dorothy Day because the meals are healthy and prepared from scratch - they even accommodate vegetarians. "
He continued, "Dorothy Day has enhanced my life like nowhere else."
To keep up with our current service of 310 meals each day, we have expanded our staff to include an additional chef and additional volunteer opportunities, which you can learn about here.
"We wouldn't be able to do this without our volunteer team," said Patrick Neilley, Food Service Manager, "They are truly the lifeblood of the Dorothy Day House kitchen."
Our community partners also ensure our ability to bring the best to those we serve - notably the Bread Project and the Berkeley Food Network, who provide our lunches four days per week.
In addition, Dorothy Day House has rekindled our close partnership with Christ Church to have a group of their volunteers spearhead our Outreach endeavors once a month on Saturdays.
Bill Barnes, a longtime member of and volunteer with Christ Church, said, "I love driving the
Outreach truck for Dorothy Day. It's given me a great opportunity to help and get to know our neighbors in the streets of Berkeley."
"Dorothy Day House has helped me to love my neighbor truly, and my hope, indeed, prayer is our growing partnership will do the same thing for my brothers and sisters at Christ Church," he continued.
Our Outreach truck has been getting a lot of use lately - it is also the hub used as our weekly parking lot pantry each Wednesday, allowing participants to come and 'shop' for needed items.
It is only because of you that we can make sure folks like Richard have access to healthy meals on a day-to-day basis. Our Food Services and other meal initiatives are supported entirely by our incredible donor community. To help a person like Richard today, please visit this link.