"Love thy neighbor as thy self"???

It was Christmas.we didn't propose to turn up with a truck and dump it outside the facility..
 

Debby said:
Then the next question is, who will pay for the rents, the insurance and security? Pulling up on a curb side for a couple hours is free.

Keep in mind the 'mission' of these folks is to feed the hungry, not solve all their problems. That would fall under the prevue of other agencies I would think.
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IMO the rents should be paid for in the form of grants from the very authorities who want the homeless off the street and out of the parks. Then the volunteers would be able to handle the work of distributing the meals in appropriate venues with toilets, fridges and ovens. Perhaps even tables and chairs to allow civilised consumption of the meals and collection of the remains.

This would not completely eliminate the need to have vans going out to the homeless and junkies who are the most dissociated from society but it would be a good start. The meal outreach is often the first step in connecting people to the other agencies that can help them with their underlying problems.
 

Most supermarkets sell gift cards for all kinds of eateries, giving a gift card to a homeless person for a meal is a positive thing.
 
The "Tiny House" trend can be applied to the disabled homeless. A 12'x12' area can contain a bed, table, chair, shower, sink, and toilet. Blocks of these micro apartments, with separate entries, could be constructed out of shipping containers which now jam our docks due to disproportionate export/import activities. No stove (microwave OK) and the water is only warm. The whole interior could be laminated chemically so it could be "flushed out". For various reasons, they require privacy and independence. We want and need to see them cared for some how. This sounds like a basic plan. Along with food stamps and healthcare, they can survive and we can feel humane. At the beginning, I noted the disabled (mentally or physically) homeless...I'm not into subsidizing freeloaders or free spirits. It's a free country but not a free ride.
 
Do we know if all the people were homeless. Perhaps they are low on money because they just lost their job and need to get free food until
he/she find a job. Were there veterans in the food line? Were there children there?
 
Debby, I have the same mind set as you do. Let people know that your city/town has a problem of people who are unable to buy food as we are. They may not all be homeless and may not all be bums. Think about our veterans who are emotional ill and are just given bags of pills instead of the help to get counseling. They are nearly as many veterans commiting suicide as died in Afghanstan and Iraq.
 
Ok, this is what was happening in Denver, CO during their freeze spell this week:
The Salvation Army says it won't turn anyone away, but not everyone will take advantage of the warm beds.
"There's a great many people who have been out on these streets for years and all we can really do is suggest they take the information we give them and try to use it," said Joey Guynn who works for the Salvation Army's search and rescue division. "We can't force anybody off the streets. We can only offer them help."

This is what I was talking about in my previous reply on this Thread about how there are some homeless people who don't want any help so they can get away from being homeless. It's hard for some folks to believe that there are homeless people who want to stay homeless, but there are!
 
Food isn't the only need.

Vatican Installing Showers for Homeless

VATICAN CITY — Nov 13, 2014, 5:02 PM ET
By NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press


Homeless people around the Vatican are getting more than just handouts from charitable passers-by. They're getting a shower.

The pope's chief alms-giver, Monsignor Konrad Krajewski, says three showers will be installed in the public restrooms off Bernini's Colonnade in St. Peter's Square to cater to homeless men and women.

Krajewski, whose small acts of charity in Francis' name are well known, told La Stampa's Vatican Insider website that he came up with the idea after meeting a homeless man named Franco while coming home from confession one day. Krajewski said he offered to take Franco to dinner after learning it was his 50th birthday, but he declined because of his stench.

"I brought him with me anyway. We had Chinese," Krajewski was quoted as saying. "While we were at the table, he told me that you can always find something to eat in Rome. But what is missing are places to wash yourself."

Krajewski told reporters last year that he envisages his work as the papal "almoner" as being a hands-on extension of Pope Francis, who as cardinal used to visit the slums of Buenos Aires and minister to the homeless. Since Francis can no longer do so in person, he tasked Krajewski with carrying out "emergency" acts of charity in his name.

Krajewski's coffers are funded by the sales of papal parchments, hand-made certificates with a photo of the pope that the faithful can buy for a wedding, baptism, priestly ordination or other occasion, with the name of the recipient and an apostolic blessing written in calligraphy.

Recently his office has been the target of criticism from shopkeepers and artisans around the Vatican who make the parchments. They have been told that starting Jan. 1, the Vatican is reserving the business for itself, to better fund Francis' charitable efforts.

http://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/vatican-installing-showers-homeless-26898183
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