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Showing posts from November, 2023

The death rate: an excerpt from "Rough Sleepers"

In Massachusetts, the people who lived mostly in shelters suffered a death rate about four times higher than that of the state's general adult population.  But the people who stayed outside year-round--the Street Team's special patients, whom Jim [the doctor who is the subject of the book] had once imagined as "hardy survivors"--died at about ten times the normal rate. Tracy Kidder, Rough Sleepers , Random House, 2023 Image: Canva

November 27, 2023 newsletter

  Good morning all, and I truly hope you had a wonderful time last week, gathering with friends, family, or even with strangers! We had a fabulous gathering on Friday evening, where we enjoyed a turkey dinner together and shared things that we are grateful for. I am grateful for all of you, and I want to especially recognize one couple in this letter who have been so faithful twice a week, every week, since forever ago! That is Becky and Rick J, who cart all of the donations from the bin at Shop 'n Save to us every Wednesday and Saturday. It also doesn't hurt that they are upbeat people who love others! So thank you to you guys and Colleen for keeping those supply lines open and flowing! I also want to send a special thank you to my friend John E, who, with very little notice, jumped into action to help me collect the fruits of a local food drive last week. Just a little extra task to add to a busy week...thank you John! And thank you so much to SpringDell Farm for the

Winner Winner Turkey Dinner! Tonight, Friday Nov 24

  Stone Soup Kitchen opens at 4 pm on Friday evenings at Living Water Fellowship in Devenscrest, Ayer. It is open to ANYone who wants a good hot meal and some company...no need to bring anything but yourself unless you want to! From 4 to 5, we are open for those who want to get together and socialize, do puzzles, or play games in the dining room. The potluck dinner is available from 5 to 5:30 followed by dessert and our support group. The open support group meeting with Teri T runs from 5:30 to 6, if you'd like to stay for it after dinner. This week, the potluck will feature turkey with various sides, dessert, juice, and some extra snacks to take home for the weekend. Our food pantry is open every Saturday morning from 10 to noon, same location. If you need food, or KNOW someone who needs food...please come pick some up. Email any questions to stonesoupkitchenministries @ gmail . com (remove the spaces) or leave us a private comment here. ANYone is welcome...no questions

Abundance

 Every time we turn around, this is what happens at Stone Soup Kitchen!  Abundance and blessings.  This is why we don't worry 💕      The Loaves and the Fishes

November 20, 2023 newsletter

I have one thing that the ultra-rich will never have. Enough.  ~ Paraphrase of John Bogle by my husband, who quoted him wrong, but close enough! Good morning friends! You might have noticed, but maybe not, that at Stone Soup Kitchen, we operate on an abundance model, not a scarcity one. Too many times in the history of SSK, I have seen things appear just as they were needed, as God moved in the heart of someone who didn't even know they were going to be the answer to prayer. Sometimes this happened even before I had a chance to think about it and pray! Your beliefs may differ, and I respect all of you, but it has been my experience that there is plenty for everyone, and I am happy to tell you all that we've been able to help a LOT of people so far during this difficult season. In the spirit of plenty, let's talk about Thanksgiving! Over the past few weeks, we have received a lot of love and support from individuals and families in our community, and we are ver

Poverty

Poverty exists not because we cannot feed the poor, but because we cannot satisfy the rich.     ~Anonymous  

Friday Social + Potluck, Friday Support Group, + Saturday Food Pantry

  Stone Soup Kitchen opens at 4 pm on Friday evenings at Living Water Fellowship in Devenscrest, Ayer. It is open to ANYone who wants a good hot meal and some company...no need to bring anything but yourself unless you want to! From 4 to 5, we are open for those who want to get together and socialize, do puzzles, or play games in the dining room. The potluck dinner is available from 5 to 5:30 followed by dessert and our support group. The open support group meeting with Teri T runs from 5:30 to 6, if you'd like to stay for it after dinner. This week, the potluck will feature shepherd's pie with various sides, dessert, juice, and some extra snacks to take home for the weekend. Our food pantry is open every Saturday morning from 10 to noon, same location. If you need food, or KNOW someone who needs food...please come pick some up. Email any questions to stonesoupkitchenministries @ gmail . com (remove the spaces) or leave us a private comment here. ANYone is welcome...n

Thank you to all!

Everyone who runs a community program will tell you that there are a LOT of people behind the scenes who make it happen. I hope that all these people know how much I love and respect them, and that I am extremely THANKFUL to them for all they do for our community For Stone Soup Kitchen, there are people who work hard to make it happen each and every week: The donors The shoppers The transporters The bag packers The Cookie Brigade The pantry workers The dinner workers The support group leader The grocery store workers The local farmers and gardeners The local businesses, town departments, churches, and civic clubs The tutors and the leaders of workshops, classes, and events The community foundations and other grantors

November 13, 2023 newsletter

  And just like that, it's cold! I hope you all had a good weekend. Mike's and mine was filled with trying to get caught up on sleep. I know, terribly exciting 😊 Mike spent the week in San Diego and was supposed to get home on a red-eye early Friday morning, take a nap, and then come to dinner that evening. Then, after a great night's sleep, he planned to help me in the pantry on Saturday. Well, modern travel...you can guess how that went! He did get home in time to help on Saturday. Stone Soup Kitchen really had a great weekend though. We all enjoyed each other's company at the Friday evening dinner, and then while the pantry was open on Saturday, Debbie E and Melanie P ran the monthly Crafts Gathering. One of the things they worked on was beautiful greeting cards that we could put in our bread bags over the next few weeks. There are some pictures attached of what they made. They scrambled to make some before we even officially opened so that we could st

Friday Social + Potluck, Friday Support Group, Saturday Food Pantry + Craft Gathering

  Stone Soup Kitchen opens at 4 pm on Friday evenings at Living Water Fellowship in Devenscrest, Ayer. It is open to ANYone who wants a good hot meal and some company...no need to bring anything but yourself unless you want to! From 4 to 5, we are open for those who want to get together and socialize, do puzzles, or play games in the dining room. The potluck dinner is available from 5 to 5:30 followed by dessert and our support group. Haircuts will also be available today! The open support group meeting with Teri T runs from 5:30 to 6, if you'd like to stay for it after dinner. This week, the potluck will feature maple chicken wings with various sides, dessert, juice, and some extra snacks to take home for the weekend. Our food pantry is open every Saturday morning from 10 to noon, same location. If you need food, or KNOW someone who needs food...please come pick some up. Email any questions to stonesoupkitchenministries @ gmail . com (remove the spaces) or leave us a pr

November 6, 2023 newsletter

  Good Monday morning, friends. Before I launch into everything else that's going on, I want to take a moment and send out a very special thank you to Tina, Kathleen, and Lin, who got the pantry open and running when I couldn't be there. Also thanks to our shoppers who keep us stocked each week with fresh produce, bread, and pantry goods that we're running low on. Those of you who donate money to us, this is how we use it, unless it's been earmarked for something specific: there is a handful of people who go out and shop in bulk for us, getting the best prices they can. They fill in what we don't receive in donations from the community, food businesses, or the food bank. In essence, everything that we're receiving IS from the community, whether it's first hand food donations or purchased through your monetary donations. It's truly taking a village to keep this community-funded organization humming, and I am so very grateful to all the shoppers, tra

Friday Social + Potluck, Friday Support Group, + Saturday Food Pantry

  Stone Soup Kitchen opens at 4 pm on Friday evenings at Living Water Fellowship in Devenscrest, Ayer. It is open to ANYone who wants a good hot meal and some company...no need to bring anything but yourself unless you want to! From 4 to 5, we are open for those who want to get together and socialize, do puzzles, or play games in the dining room. The potluck dinner is available from 5 to 5:30 followed by dessert and our support group. Haircuts will also be available today! The open support group meeting with Teri T runs from 5:30 to 6, if you'd like to stay for it after dinner. This week, the potluck will feature beef stroganoff with various sides, dessert, juice, and some extra snacks to take home for the weekend. Our food pantry is open every Saturday morning from 10 to noon, same location. If you need food, or KNOW someone who needs food...please come pick some up. Email any questions to stonesoupkitchenministries @ gmail . com (remove the spaces) or leave us a private