Throughout its 40-year history, Sister Mary Loretto Memorial Community Soup Kitchen has experienced its fair share of uplifting times and trying times.
All the while, a volunteer crew working with the Salvation Army of Lockport has been able to provide a hot meal every Monday through Friday for those who have needed it most.
In some ways, being able to sit down at a table for a meal is almost as important as the food itself.
“It’s a means to give back and having that sense of community provides a family atmosphere,” Salvation Army Major Tom Duperree said.
In 2020, that community was scattered when the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in New York state forced closing of the dining room at the Salvation Army center. For a solid year, meal service through the soup kitchen was take-out only.
Volunteer cook Rebia Maroney recalls that while the meal prep didn’t change too much, serving those meals changed drastically.
“Basically, for that we had a cart, and I would take out containers. I would still cook regular, set (the meals) up … and take 10 out at a time,” Maroney said.
One of the most difficult things, she noted, was not being able to directly interact with the people that she was serving.
“I missed that during Covid. I’m standing here facing (the dining room) and there’s nobody,” Maroney said.
When the dining room reopened in 2022, Maroney said things seemed to go back to “normal,” but some health department regulations that were changed because of the pandemic still have an impact on soup kitchen operations.
“They’re not getting their regular silverware, now it’s only plasticware they get with their meals,” she said. “We used to have cups where they could get their own water, now everything has to be individual where there’s no contact.”
One of the effects of such rules is soup kitchen food service costs more now.
“I was trying to purchase water and realized if I bought a case of water from the store, and if I picked it up myself, each bottle cost 24 cents each. Getting them delivered costs 48 cents per bottle. That doubles the price right there,” Duperree noted.
He added that this further underscores the importance of the food donations from local food banks and grocery stores in supplying the ingredients for daily meals.
“They’re a steady mainstay for us,” Duperree said. “Every week of the year they’re giving us food donations, which are gifts in kind that we can convert into great meals for people.”
Maroney said she does her best to prepare different kinds of dishes with the ingredients she has. Whatever she comes up with, she’s making it for 100.
Lunch on Wednesday was a unique creation that Maroney likened to a casserole, consisting of noodles, beans, diced tomatoes, cream of chicken soup and ground beef.
While there is no dedicated recipe book at the soup kitchen, Maroney said she has a good feel for how much of each ingredient should go into each dish she makes. Seven pounds of pasta went into her casserole, she noted.
Having that experience in the kitchen is integral to the soup kitchen operation, Duperree observed.
“It’s great to have people who want to serve, give and volunteer. The ladies in the kitchen have longevity and are invested in the long haul to take care of the community,” he said.
{br class=”Apple-interchange-newline” /}EVERY PENNY COUNTS
The Sister Mary Loretto Memorial Community Soup Kitchen is in its 40th year of operation in Lockport and the annual community fund drive to sustain it for another year is underway. This year’s goal is $75,000. To contribute:
— Clip the fund gift form published daily in the Union-Sun & Journal and either drop off your donation and the gift form at the Salvation Army office or mail it to: Salvation Army, 50 Cottage St., Lockport, NY 14094. Checks should be made out to the Salvation Army of Lockport and “Soup Kitchen” written on the memo line, to ensure that the money goes directly to support soup kitchen operations.
— Text SOUPSON to 31333 and be directed to a digital donation page. The “in honor / in memory” designation is available.