Soup Kitchen Blog

11-02-2018

Medway - Soup kitchen

Blog by Claire De Boos

It was a icy and snowy night in Medway last night with temperatures of around 2 degrees!! Despite the wintery evening around 50-60 people visited our weekly soup kitchen. Quite remarkable considering how cold the evening was. No one would have turned out in that weather unless they were in real need of some help.

Hot drinks were being guzzled in great magnitude - an attempt to keep warm! Many guests came back for second and third cups. While other guests queued for food and snacks, hot drinks were distributed as they waited.

Among the freshly cooked food offerings this week were yummy homemade roast dinners, potato and sausage filled yorkshire puds, chicken pasta, sweet and sour chicken with rice, plus warm fruit pudding and custard. There were also cakes and muffins plus fruit and other savory items.

Clothing was in great demand with lots of requests for hats, gloves and fleecy jumpers. Many people went away kitted out with warm clothing essential for this time of year.

A massive shout out to my fellow volunteers (old and new) whom, without them, it would simply not be possible. Once again they excelled!! Creating a welcoming enviornment where people can come and talk, receive advice and signposting. It was extremely humbling when a passerby out jogging stopped and asked how he might become involved. We are always looking to expand our volunteering pool and would love to hear from you if you, your friends, or family would like to get involved. There are many varying roles as a volunteer which you could help with.

Having been a volunteer with OBF for around a year and a half, I’ve learnt there are many reasons why people end up living on the streets and it’s not up to us to judge or criticise these reasons. We need to undertsand and see homeless people as human beings. They deserve our respect and are no different from you or I. I’ve developed a good bond with some of our regular guests simply by listening to their stories and sharing a hug or a kind word.

Despite the bitter coldness of the night, I couldn’t help but fight that heart warming feeling you get from helping others.