Cathedral Kitchen COVID-19 Update
July 15, 2020
Dear Cathedral Kitchen Supporters and Friends,
I hope you are enjoying the summer as best you can despite the uncertain times.
At Cathedral Kitchen we are starting to see day-to-day operations look a little more like they did before the pandemic impacted us in early March.
We invited volunteers back two weeks ago to help with the Meal Program. Four to five volunteers come in the afternoon Monday through Saturday to help assemble the bags of food and bottled water we give out to each guests and to help hand out the meals at the door. It’s been a real morale boost to have volunteers back in the building. We have missed the energy that they bring!
So far this year the number of people coming for meals is about 11% less than it was last year at this time. We think this is most likely due to the pandemic and some guests being too nervous to come for meals. Because of that, we have been increasing the number of partnerships we have in the community so that we can distribute more meals to individuals and families who need them off site.
In addition, some of our partners have started to come back to serve the meal guests. Project HOPE is here on Thursdays providing COVID-19 testing, Nurse Sara from Camden County is here Tuesdays and Thursdays to provide information about the virus, and Tom Martin from the Camden County Pop-Up Library is here Wednesdays to give out books.
We are also excited to share that we have a new process we are starting for distributing personal care items to guests. Starting in August, we will be moving to a choice model where once a week all guests will be able to select three to four items (such as underwear, socks, deodorant, tooth brush) from a list of what we have in stock, and these items will be handed out discreetly in a bag to each guest. In order to make this happen, we are in need of these travel size items:
- Deodorant
- Body Lotion
- Shampoo
- Conditioner
- Toothpaste
- Disposable Shaving Razor
We are also in need of men’s and women’s new black crew socks and underwear: men’s Boxers – sizes S, M, L, XL, 2XL and women’s Hipster Briefs – sizes S, M, L, XL, 2XL. Please note that there is no need to assemble these items in bags as we are extending the hospitality of allowing our guests to choose what items they need.
If you are able to help, please logon to our volunteer portal to schedule your donation
here.
On another note, last week small groups of students whose culinary and baking classes were cancelled in March started returning to participate in refresher classes offered by Chef Jill so that they can take and pass the ServSafe exam. It was wonderful to finally see the students again, even with their masks on! So far 10 students have taken the exam. Another group came in this week, and the third groups of students will return later this month. We are also busy enrolling these and other unemployed adults in our new 5 week training program that will start in August. The program will teach soft skills, such as how to interview and employer expectations on the job, as well as financial literacy. It will also assist participants in obtaining employment in sectors that are hiring such as grocery stores. For safety reasons, we are only enrolling 10 students per 5-week class, and we plan to offer the class three times this fall.
The Project Smiles dental clinic is re-opening on a limited basis today. Dr. Bob Leonetti, the Clinic Director, will be seeing patients who were in the process of getting dentures when the clinic’s operations were suspended as well as patients with emergencies. Dr. Bob has announced that in September he will retire from the clinic after 12 years of service, so we are looking for a new part-time Clinic Director, which is a paid position, as well as additional volunteer dentists. If you know someone who may be interested, please have them contact me at 856-964-6771 or
carrie@cathedralkitchen.org.
The CK Café opened two weeks ago for take-out and curbside pick-up Monday through Friday from 11 am to 2:30 pm. Please call 856-225-0257 if you would like to place an order. The Café has been relatively slow in sales, and we are working on developing some creative new ideas to drum up more business. Stay tuned!
Catering is also available. If you are interested, please call Mari Kehoe at 856-964-6771 or email her at
mari@cathedralkitchen.org.
Our annual fundraising event in November has been transitioned to a virtual one, Harvest Happy Hour. Please contact Noreen Flewelling if you are interested in donating an auction prize or sponsoring the event – there are an array of levels.
That’s the update for now.
Thank you so much for all your donations of snacks, water, sandwiches and funds over the last several months. We couldn’t have accomplished what we have without your help!
Best wishes,
Carrie
