PITTSBURG, Kan. — The Lord’s Diner in Pittsburg has a brand new technique to ship meals the place they’re wanted most — a meals truck. Anybody can stroll as much as the meals truck window to be served, with no charge or registration required.
“They’re superb, angelic folks to our hometown,” mentioned Stevie Barrera, a Pittsburg resident who makes use of the meal service. “They’re on the entrance strains of starvation. We couldn’t ask for a greater group.”
The Pittsburg group is a department of The Lord’s Diner in Wichita. It’s beneath the umbrella of the Catholic Diocese of Wichita. However Laura Ramsey, web site director, is fast to level out the group is nondenominational, offering service to anybody of any religion. The Lord’s Diner has been working in Pittsburg for six years, beginning service out of their eating corridor at 406 N. Locust Ave.
The group serves a night meal Monday by Friday. Additionally they hand out baggage on Fridays to assist folks by the weekend.
The workers is small — two full-time and one part-time member — and the remainder of the work is dealt with by volunteers. The Lord’s Diner serves 250 to 275 meals a day in Pittsburg.
When COVID-19 hit, Ramsey mentioned, they went from serving within the eating corridor to serving to-go meals out of the entrance door. Whereas it wasn’t a significant component within the determination, the pandemic has been the transition to cell distribution with the meals truck. All meals are actually served from the truck and never on the downtown location.
“Transportation has more and more change into a problem,” Ramsey mentioned. “We had been listening to increasingly that folks couldn’t get to us. That led to the dialogue of the meals truck, to exit and attempt to attain them.”
In regards to the truck
The truck was supplied by an nameless donor in Pittsburg. After the donation, the truck traveled to Wichita, the place its inside fixtures had been put in. The Lord’s Diner in Wichita has been utilizing meals vans for a number of years. The Pittsburg location began utilizing its truck in October within the parking zone so visitors and workers might get used to it.
Contained in the meals truck is a steam desk, a number of cupboards to maintain heat meals heat and chilly meals chilly, and a serving window. Meals served embrace baked rooster, hamburgers, pork chops, pasta — actually something hearty and filling. Vitamin is vital as effectively, Ramsey mentioned. They embrace greens and starches with the meals. Meals comes from the commodities program, neighborhood donations and the Kansas Meals Financial institution.
“A meals truck had all the time been behind the thoughts of the place we wished to go ultimately,” Ramsey mentioned. “Not solely will we feed folks, we need to socialize with folks, to feed their souls as effectively.”
Figuring out the meals truck stops in Pittsburg was a protracted course of, Ramsey mentioned. They checked out the place the necessity is, particularly households and youngsters. Additionally they needed to think about the place to park, what’s most accessible to folks and if companies had been agreeable for them to come back there.
The primary cease of the day is by The Towers and Stilwell Residences. Through the early days of the pandemic, these locations requested meals as a result of they had been on lockdown. Ramsey mentioned making the choice to cease there for the residents was their first consideration. The truck additionally stops on the Knights of Columbus Corridor, which is centrally situated, and Deramus Park, on the far facet of city. Workers remains to be evaluating the areas and testing the necessity round city.
Barrera, a lifelong resident of Pittsburg, is at the moment staying on the Wesley Home shelter for the unhoused. She is determined by The Lord’s Diner for her night meals, in addition to delivering about eight meals a day to individuals who aren’t in a position to journey to the meals truck.
Barrera has been getting meals at The Lord’s Diner for about 4 years. Earlier than the meals truck, she needed to stroll to their downtown location.
“I find it irresistible a lot. It’s of the utmost comfort for me,” Barrera mentioned. “They pull up proper throughout the street from the Wesley Home. I can stroll up and get eight meals to take across the neighborhood, and right here, there’s some individuals who can’t even make it throughout the road. I make the most of their companies so much.”
Volunteers sought
Barrera mentioned she can also be grateful The Lord’s Diner arms out gadgets like gloves, hand heaters and clothes wanted by the visitors. Additionally, she mentioned she can be misplaced with out the weekend baggage, which comprise additional provides.
Volunteers are vital to this system, Ramsey mentioned, particularly with such a small workers to organize and distribute meals every day. It’s the volunteers who assist hand out the weekend baggage to visitors, in addition to socialize with them. A brand new mission group of volunteers referred to as the LAG staff — Love All Friends — helps distribute bottled water, provides and offers encouragement to visitors.
These thinking about volunteering can contact Anna Oberle at 620-875-3487. The Lord’s Diner asks that volunteers be a minimum of 13 years previous and that youthful volunteers have an grownup or guardian current.
“It’s fairly good that the youthful people are thinking about serving to. You don’t all the time get that,” Ramsey mentioned. “We do have lots of youthful folks thinking about volunteering, and seeing what they don’t see on a standard foundation, seeing how good their lives are in comparison with what some folks have.”
Friends and volunteers alike have responded effectively to the meals truck and the brand new cell distribution of meals by The Lord’s Diner, Ramsey mentioned. Stops and instances are on The Lord’s Diner Fb web page, which can publish updates to the schedule as effectively.
Attain Roger at rnomer@joplinglobe.com.
