Since it is still quite cold in the evenings here and during the nights I thought some nice hot Tortilla Soup with lots of zucchini would be good to warm up the people in the parks this past Saturday. We fed 55 people altogether.
Thank you Dave & Linda, Marilyn, Faith, Gerry & Kim, for your awesome help with this meal !! :) You all will be in my heart always !! :)
It was my very last meal served in the City parks and now it is on to new adventures. I decided to stop, for good this time, since at Christmas time I stuffed 72 backpacks full of gifts and necessities and after we handed them out to 72 homeless people not even one acknowledged this or said thank you to me. It felt like, what took me three months to put together, the homeless people saw as an obligation or an entitlement and that just broke my heart. :( A little gratitude can go a long way !! So after 4 years of doing this and 11,430 meals served I have closed up the kitchen.
I would like to thank all of my helpers during the past 4 years once more for your loving support & for giving your time, money and energy to this project. I am ever so grateful and I hope that you are always blessed in return in many, many different ways !! :) The world is a much better place because of all of you in it !! :)
After taking a little time out to tie up all the loose ends from feeding the homeless I will start my next adventure. :) I have been thinking about this and have done some research for a couple of years already and the time is here to actually do it now. :)
Most of you have heard of the school children's Backpack Program, where each child on Friday will get a backpack filled with enough food for the weekend. On Monday the child brings the empty backpack back to school and then everything will repeat itself on Friday.
My plan is to find a Day Care and do the same every week, since many single Mom's are struggling to feed their little ones. And Day Care is so expensive. The plan is to do this only on a smaller scale through my home with the help of people who would like to donate or help out. :) Please let me know if you are interested in continuing to help in one way or another. :)
I am so ready for some innocence and the smiles of all those lil' Day Care Munchkins !! :)
Feeding the Homeless People in the City Parks of Tucson, Arizona.
Wednesday, February 12, 2014
Saturday, January 25, 2014
Cheeseburger Stoup, Tossed Salad & Bread
Another weekend and another meal served. :) This time it was Cheeseburger Stoup, a cross between a stew and soup. :) I always try to make this thicker and more stew like to give the homeless more nourishment and more solid food. This seems to be one of their favorites, as we always get extra "thank yous" when serving it. :) Tacos is another one of those.
We also made a big bucket of tossed salad and had lots of bread to go with it all. We ended up feeding 60 people. :) Right now it is hovering around 60+ every time we go. Both great big pots were totally empty when we left the parks, many homeless had come back up for seconds. :)
I saw many new faces this time around, more than usual. I can't help but wonder why this was happening, but just don't know.
It is great that the days are getting longer again and that we don't serve when it is dark anymore, at least not in the first park. In the second park it is dark pretty much from the beginning still, but there are great lights there now, so we all can see. :)
K.C., thank you so much for donating all that candy !! :) It looks like you went out and even bought more than you offered to start with. You are awesome !! :) Sorry I missed you, I was running a little late.
Hilde and Sue, thank you for jumping in at the last minute to cook the meal together !! :) You bailed me out !! It is always so much fun to be in the kitchen with you both & I miss the days when we did it more often. :) I'm very grateful for all the hard work you both did !! :)
Dave, thank you so much for contributing some of the food and as always for loading up the car for me !! You are always there when I need you and I so appreciate you for it !! :)
Marilyn, Gerry and Kim, I couldn't do this without your loving help and am sending you each a great big thank you !! :) And another one to you Marilyn for cleaning up the big pots & salad bucket afterwards !! :)
Mark, thank you for the wonderful check you sent !! :) It will help out quite a bit. :)
A great big thank you goes to some of the members of the St. Joseph Rosary Makers for donating used warm clothes once more. :) Also to Hilde's church group for the odds and ends that are so helpful always !! :) It all is needed.
Time to get some rest now. :) Sleep with the Angels everyone !! :)
We also made a big bucket of tossed salad and had lots of bread to go with it all. We ended up feeding 60 people. :) Right now it is hovering around 60+ every time we go. Both great big pots were totally empty when we left the parks, many homeless had come back up for seconds. :)
I saw many new faces this time around, more than usual. I can't help but wonder why this was happening, but just don't know.
It is great that the days are getting longer again and that we don't serve when it is dark anymore, at least not in the first park. In the second park it is dark pretty much from the beginning still, but there are great lights there now, so we all can see. :)
K.C., thank you so much for donating all that candy !! :) It looks like you went out and even bought more than you offered to start with. You are awesome !! :) Sorry I missed you, I was running a little late.
Hilde and Sue, thank you for jumping in at the last minute to cook the meal together !! :) You bailed me out !! It is always so much fun to be in the kitchen with you both & I miss the days when we did it more often. :) I'm very grateful for all the hard work you both did !! :)
Dave, thank you so much for contributing some of the food and as always for loading up the car for me !! You are always there when I need you and I so appreciate you for it !! :)
Marilyn, Gerry and Kim, I couldn't do this without your loving help and am sending you each a great big thank you !! :) And another one to you Marilyn for cleaning up the big pots & salad bucket afterwards !! :)
Mark, thank you for the wonderful check you sent !! :) It will help out quite a bit. :)
A great big thank you goes to some of the members of the St. Joseph Rosary Makers for donating used warm clothes once more. :) Also to Hilde's church group for the odds and ends that are so helpful always !! :) It all is needed.
Time to get some rest now. :) Sleep with the Angels everyone !! :)
Friday, January 17, 2014
My Four Year Anniversary
Today is my four year anniversary of feeding the homeless people. :) It doesn't seem possible that it has been that long already. :o
The past four years have been filled with joy and sadness, loss, and new friends too. :) And I wouldn't trade most of it. I learned a lot about doing this kind of work, on what not to do and on what is beneficial and helpful to the homeless and I try to pass it on to others as much as possible. It has been quite a journey !! :) Some day I will write a book about it all in hopes to inspire others who are interested in doing this too, for now this blog will do. :)
It has been quite a challenge, and at times it still is, to transform the recipes I find into those huge quantities we cook each time and to make them work as planned. :) I only ever cooked for my small family and my friends before this, although then I even always cooked a little too much. :) But I never cooked for 60 to 100 people at the time. :) And up until about 14 years ago I truly disliked cooking. How about that and how about how time changes us ?? :)
With the help of so many kind souls, all over this beautiful country of ours, more than 11,300 people were fed during this period of time and we all slept better knowing that there were some of the homeless people here sleeping with full bellies those nights. :)
So here is to another four years, or at least to as long as my 70 year old body holds up for this gift to others who are less blessed than we are !! :)
Thank you each and everyone who ever helped out with this, I am ever so grateful to you all !! :)
The past four years have been filled with joy and sadness, loss, and new friends too. :) And I wouldn't trade most of it. I learned a lot about doing this kind of work, on what not to do and on what is beneficial and helpful to the homeless and I try to pass it on to others as much as possible. It has been quite a journey !! :) Some day I will write a book about it all in hopes to inspire others who are interested in doing this too, for now this blog will do. :)
It has been quite a challenge, and at times it still is, to transform the recipes I find into those huge quantities we cook each time and to make them work as planned. :) I only ever cooked for my small family and my friends before this, although then I even always cooked a little too much. :) But I never cooked for 60 to 100 people at the time. :) And up until about 14 years ago I truly disliked cooking. How about that and how about how time changes us ?? :)
So here is to another four years, or at least to as long as my 70 year old body holds up for this gift to others who are less blessed than we are !! :)
Thank you each and everyone who ever helped out with this, I am ever so grateful to you all !! :)
Saturday, January 11, 2014
Chili, Crackers, Tossed Salad & Lots of Cake
Tonight's meal was Chili once more since it is such comfort food & it is pretty cold now in the evenings here & during the nights. My hope is that it warms up the homeless people from the inside out. :) We also had lots of crackers & my cooking angel, Faith & I also made a great big tossed salad. For dessert we had two wonderful cakes that Buck had made with fun & colorful frosting. :) They were a big success, Buck, and people wanted seconds. And there were also some cookies. We fed 61 homeless people tonight & everyone was happy & some really grateful for the food. :)
Marilyn, Gerry & our lil' Lexie (12) came to help serve & it was such a joy to have Lexie with us again. She is such a ray of brightness & cuteness & is so bubbly !! :) Thank you all so much for helping again !! :)
Dave & Linda chipped in with some of the food again & Dave loaded up all the heavy stuff into the car at my home. Thank you both, I'm very grateful to you !! :)
Jeanne had brought over blankets & pillows for the homeless, so we handed those out tonight also. Jeanne, thanks for all your kind efforts with this, that was really awesome !! :)
We had stuffed backpacks left-over from Christmas, so Marilyn made sure that everyone who didn't receive one two weeks ago, got one this time. :) Now they all are gone & I have my livingroom & diningroom floor back again. :) Yay !! :)
Good night everyone & sleep with the Angels !! :)
Marilyn, Gerry & our lil' Lexie (12) came to help serve & it was such a joy to have Lexie with us again. She is such a ray of brightness & cuteness & is so bubbly !! :) Thank you all so much for helping again !! :)
Dave & Linda chipped in with some of the food again & Dave loaded up all the heavy stuff into the car at my home. Thank you both, I'm very grateful to you !! :)
Jeanne had brought over blankets & pillows for the homeless, so we handed those out tonight also. Jeanne, thanks for all your kind efforts with this, that was really awesome !! :)
We had stuffed backpacks left-over from Christmas, so Marilyn made sure that everyone who didn't receive one two weeks ago, got one this time. :) Now they all are gone & I have my livingroom & diningroom floor back again. :) Yay !! :)
Good night everyone & sleep with the Angels !! :)
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