Home-Cooked Meals for the Homeless: An Act of Service and Love

It all started with a kitchen renovation at St. James. The former pastor, Fr. Archie Fernandez, asked some of the ladies of the parish to put this beautiful kitchen to good use. So they reached out to Lighthouse Outreach Center and started providing a meal once a month to the people who are staying at the center. This group of ladies spearheaded the service within the parish for two years before Nita Swan took over. Nita then asked her friend and fellow parishioner, Eva Boatwright, to assist her in this ministry.

Lighthouse Outreach Center is a local Christian-based resource center for those in need. It provides shelter, assistance finding a job, and help with life skills. On the first Monday of each month, they prepare a meal for the 60-70 people staying at the shelter. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, Nita and Eva cooked these delicious homemade meals in the kitchen at St. James — but at the onset of the pandemic, they started cooking it in Eva’s home.

For Nita and Eva, this is truly a labor of love.

“Whenever you feed someone, you are feeding Jesus,” Eva says. “Giving is the way that Jesus wants you to live your life. And for us, sharing these meals is really showing love in a special way.”

Many different organizations will provide monthly meals for Lighthouse Outreach Center. Many of them will order pizza or other meals, which is a huge help for the center. Nita and Eva focus on the love and effort that is put into providing a home-cooked meal.

“We enjoy preparing a menu that will give them different types of meals,” Nita says. “We are both Filipino so at least once a year we will do a whole meal with Filipino food. They really seem to enjoy that!”

Once the menu is set, the ladies will reach out to parishioners to provide the ingredients for the meal. They have a list of names and numbers of people to contact and they will request specific ingredients from each person. Some parishioners will provide dessert, salads, or bread to accompany the main dishes as well. In addition, donations to buy any additional ingredients for the meals are always welcome. Prior to COVID-19, there was a sign-up sheet of ingredients needed and ways that people could volunteer, whether that was cooking, serving, or delivering food. Now it’s done by phone, and people are asked to provide the ingredients.

“Before the pandemic, we used to serve the meals, as well,” Eva says. “But now we just drop off the food. It was so wonderful to see the people we were serving.”

“We are sharing our gifts and resources with others,” Nita adds. “It is so gratifying to be able to fill the needs of others in the community.”

If you would like to sign up to help provide ingredients or dishes for these monthly meals, please call Nita Swan at 918-766-2661.

(From left) Nita Swan and Eva Boatwright appreciate the opportunity to provide a home-cooked meal for those in need.