Every year on Easter, Thanksgiving & Christmas, Charlotte Rescue Mission opens its doors to the community and serves warm meals to homeless men, women and children from across the Charlotte metro area.
We start at 7 in the morning with a hot breakfast followed by pastries, coffee and juice as a brunch while guests watch movies in our chapel. During this time they can also make free long distance calls to loved ones whom they may not have spoken to in years. In the words of our director, Rev. Tony Marciano, “We want them to feel like they’re going home to grandma’s for the holidays”.
When they come down to the dinning room for the meal, they don’t stand in line to receive a bowl of soup or porridge. They are seated by a volunteer maitre d’ at a table covered with a white table cloth and folded napkins. A volunteer waiter or waitress offers their choice of beverage and then brings them a full plate of warm holiday food. Afterwards they will be served a home-made dessert. If they’re still hungry, they can start the whole process again until they’re full.
Perhaps for the first time in their life, this man or woman (or even child) may feel like they’re worth something. They begin to see the inherit dignity of human life – that they are created in God’s image. You see, at Charlotte Rescue Mission – there’s no such thing as “just a meal”. Sure… a meal, by itself, doesn’t change anything, but it can be the start of a change God intends to make in that person’s life. We have seen guests stumble in drunk and decide that very day to enter our life changing programs. We’ve seen the difference it can make in a person’s life when they’re treated with such love.
Does this sound like something you want to be a part of? Consider volunteering as a server. Although we need lots of volunteers, the slots fill up fast for these days. Registration opens up approximately one month prior to the holiday. Due to increased demand, we are now limiting volunteers to one holiday per year between Thanksgiving and Christmas. That is; you may only volunteer on Thanksgiving or Christmas, not both. Be sure to contact Andria Tindall at 704-334-4635 x214 as soon as registration opens up to reserve your spot.
Holidays can certainly be a busy time of year of course and we realize that not everyone has the option of volunteering. But there are other ways to get involved. If you have baking skills, consider preparing a homemade dessert and bringing it down to the mission on the day before the holiday (or even the morning of at the latest). Monetary donations are always appreciated as well and our average cost for a meal is just $1.92.
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