Our Father's House Opens New Dining Room
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
"It's kinda like the Field of Dreams, 'If you build it, they will come,'" said Roz Morgan of her newly opened dining room Friday. The Our Father's House operator has been serving up soup and sandwiches for eight days to about 25 people per day, free of charge.
The Jerome R. Kralis Memorial Dining Room is on the north side of the charity's building at 401 Argonne Road in Warsaw. The pleasant room seats 62 people in maroon and dark green booths and tables. The booths have silk floral arrangements. Pictures featuring botanical designs are hung on the walls.
"We started saving the prints about a year ago. It's amazing that everything matches," Morgan said.
The decor doesn't really concern Morgan as much as feeding people who are hungry. The dining room is just an extension of the food pantry that has been in place since 1997, beginning at 2234 E. Center St.
The operation moved to Argonne Road a couple of years ago and the boutique-like thrift store was expanded. A shelter for women, Mary's House, has opened in Pierceton, too.
"We already need another shelter," she said relating the plight she heard this morning from a woman whose husband threatened to kill her, and then himself, in front of the children.
Proceeds from the thrift store pay Our Father's House and Mary's House expenses. Morgan has become an expert at scrounging, recycling and refurbishing. Kitchen equipment was donated by Kosciusko Community Hospital, Biomet, Rex's Rendezvous, Mosaique and the Warsaw Deli Mart, as well as a Pizza Hut that was torn down in Rochester.
Two years ago, with so many layoffs in the region, more people began visiting the food pantry.
"I haven't been prepared to see so many elderly," Morgan said. She's referring to people whose retirement income has been drastically reduced by low interest rates.
"Can you imagine being 72 years old and having a waterfront home on Winona Lake where you've lived all your married life? And paying the taxes caused by reassessment? You can bet that wasn't figured into the plans," she said of the levies that quadrupled in the last couple of years.
"The number of people we served did not go down this summer. Usually we see a decrease of 20 to 25 percent starting in May; that didn't happen," she said.
And the people seeking staples like bread, milk and butter are families where both parents work.
"They're underemployed," Morgan said. "They both earn $7 an hour, or less, and cannot afford the $60 a week in child care in the summer and pay all their other bills, too."
Our Father's House receives referrals from other agencies for things they don't even do, like rental and utility assistance.
The organization is totally self-sustaining and not afraid of hard work. When Morgan heard about a house being torn down at Tippecanoe Lake, a group of volunteers collected the aluminum siding and sold it for scrap. They collected all the fixtures for resale.
"We have our autonomy, unlike other faith-based agencies that worship at the federal funding well. We decided seven years ago to be an addition to an already overburdened system. I didn't want to slice the pie even thinner," Morgan said.
"The United Way just deposited $250 in our food bank account and I'm sure glad they did that. But we aren't a United Way agency."
Our Father's House thrives with the help of volunteers like a retired Eli Lilly chemist who washes dishes like a woman (described as younger than 80 and older than 70) and who hasn't missed a day in seven years; a 62-year-old who does all the sorting; and an assistant "chef" with years of professional kitchen experience.
"My entire payroll is only $18,000 per year and that's for data entry and maintenance," Morgan said.
The only things new in the dining room are the carpeting, the wall board and the ceiling tiles.
Food is donated by Grace College, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Bertsch Vending and purchased at a food bank.
"No one has to stand in line," she said of the free lunch service. Servers take orders and bring them back on paper plates - for now. When the throwaway plates run out china will be used.
Morgan and at least one volunteer serve lunch four days a week - Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The menu features soup, sandwiches, dessert and beverages. Friday's fare included turkey sandwich, chili, clam chowder, Rachel's potato soup, fresh hot rolls, potato salad, cake, gelatin, lemonade, coffee and milk.
"If having lunch in this small room is anyone's big event of the day, we're going to make it big," she said.
For more information about Our Father's House or Mary's House, call 574-268-1800. [[In-content Ad]]
"It's kinda like the Field of Dreams, 'If you build it, they will come,'" said Roz Morgan of her newly opened dining room Friday. The Our Father's House operator has been serving up soup and sandwiches for eight days to about 25 people per day, free of charge.
The Jerome R. Kralis Memorial Dining Room is on the north side of the charity's building at 401 Argonne Road in Warsaw. The pleasant room seats 62 people in maroon and dark green booths and tables. The booths have silk floral arrangements. Pictures featuring botanical designs are hung on the walls.
"We started saving the prints about a year ago. It's amazing that everything matches," Morgan said.
The decor doesn't really concern Morgan as much as feeding people who are hungry. The dining room is just an extension of the food pantry that has been in place since 1997, beginning at 2234 E. Center St.
The operation moved to Argonne Road a couple of years ago and the boutique-like thrift store was expanded. A shelter for women, Mary's House, has opened in Pierceton, too.
"We already need another shelter," she said relating the plight she heard this morning from a woman whose husband threatened to kill her, and then himself, in front of the children.
Proceeds from the thrift store pay Our Father's House and Mary's House expenses. Morgan has become an expert at scrounging, recycling and refurbishing. Kitchen equipment was donated by Kosciusko Community Hospital, Biomet, Rex's Rendezvous, Mosaique and the Warsaw Deli Mart, as well as a Pizza Hut that was torn down in Rochester.
Two years ago, with so many layoffs in the region, more people began visiting the food pantry.
"I haven't been prepared to see so many elderly," Morgan said. She's referring to people whose retirement income has been drastically reduced by low interest rates.
"Can you imagine being 72 years old and having a waterfront home on Winona Lake where you've lived all your married life? And paying the taxes caused by reassessment? You can bet that wasn't figured into the plans," she said of the levies that quadrupled in the last couple of years.
"The number of people we served did not go down this summer. Usually we see a decrease of 20 to 25 percent starting in May; that didn't happen," she said.
And the people seeking staples like bread, milk and butter are families where both parents work.
"They're underemployed," Morgan said. "They both earn $7 an hour, or less, and cannot afford the $60 a week in child care in the summer and pay all their other bills, too."
Our Father's House receives referrals from other agencies for things they don't even do, like rental and utility assistance.
The organization is totally self-sustaining and not afraid of hard work. When Morgan heard about a house being torn down at Tippecanoe Lake, a group of volunteers collected the aluminum siding and sold it for scrap. They collected all the fixtures for resale.
"We have our autonomy, unlike other faith-based agencies that worship at the federal funding well. We decided seven years ago to be an addition to an already overburdened system. I didn't want to slice the pie even thinner," Morgan said.
"The United Way just deposited $250 in our food bank account and I'm sure glad they did that. But we aren't a United Way agency."
Our Father's House thrives with the help of volunteers like a retired Eli Lilly chemist who washes dishes like a woman (described as younger than 80 and older than 70) and who hasn't missed a day in seven years; a 62-year-old who does all the sorting; and an assistant "chef" with years of professional kitchen experience.
"My entire payroll is only $18,000 per year and that's for data entry and maintenance," Morgan said.
The only things new in the dining room are the carpeting, the wall board and the ceiling tiles.
Food is donated by Grace College, Kentucky Fried Chicken and Bertsch Vending and purchased at a food bank.
"No one has to stand in line," she said of the free lunch service. Servers take orders and bring them back on paper plates - for now. When the throwaway plates run out china will be used.
Morgan and at least one volunteer serve lunch four days a week - Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. The menu features soup, sandwiches, dessert and beverages. Friday's fare included turkey sandwich, chili, clam chowder, Rachel's potato soup, fresh hot rolls, potato salad, cake, gelatin, lemonade, coffee and milk.
"If having lunch in this small room is anyone's big event of the day, we're going to make it big," she said.
For more information about Our Father's House or Mary's House, call 574-268-1800. [[In-content Ad]]