As the worship associate on Sunday, July 26, I announced bad news about The People’s Concern, where UUSM’s Hunger Task Force delivers about 50 bagged lunches every Sunday. Because of a financial shortfall, beginning in mid-August, The People’s Concern will be closed on the weekends and cutting back the services they offer. I said that we, the UUSM Hunger Task Force leaders, would explore options for how to continue helping the organization if they were not open to receiving the bagged lunches on Sundays.
Today, I am happy to report that we have a medium-term plan. We have met with the team from The People Concern and have agreed to continue to provide lunches to be delivered on Sundays to their interim housing shelter, SAMOSHEL (SAnta MOnica SHELter). The People’s Concern will hold them for the Access Center until Monday. We are also discussing more ways to help, including volunteers to make lunches on-site.
The People’s Concern is still facing significant challenges, but for now, we are grateful that we are able to continue to provide our direct service to feed our unhoused neighbors.
Many people contribute and help coordinate this effort, among them: Lauren Poole, Charles Masten, Ellen Gill, Christine Ong, John and Sharon Hart, and Anne Bridgins and Brian Kenyon. We couldn’t do it without Tom Ahern, and our many regulars who help pack the lunches, including Jim, Brooke and Calvin, Bob, Nancy, Audrey, Deborah, Julie, Dan and so many others. Thank you.
Lunches for Bunches began many years ago. Jacki Weber, Lois Hutchinson, Teresa Castelli, and Cassie Winters and many others were instrumental. Over the years and post-Covid, Lunches for Bunches morphed into its current form. We take individually prepackaged food that I order from Costco, which the church and the congregation generously pay for, and after service we pack up about 50 lunches together every week. The hosts take turns delivering them to The People Concern, a drop-in center on Olympic just west of Lincoln. That’s about two thousand lunches every year. We’ve also expanded to a permanent clothing drive which started as a winter clothing drive and became year round.
The Center has been a place where anyone can go to get a packed lunch, take a shower, do laundry, get clothing and grooming supplies, or pick up mail, which they receive for people without an address.
