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Another Outdoor Work Day scheduled for Saturday, September 11

The final Outdoor Work Day of the summer is set for Saturday, September 11 from 8am to 1pm.  There are three goals for the day.  One is to finish installing the vinyl siding, this time on the south side of the building.  Once again, the siding has been donated by The Home Depot. 

The transforming of the woods into a park setting will also be concluded.  We need folks with chainsaws to cut brush and saplings, and landscapers with commercial chippers to chip up the brush.  We’ll need plenty of volunteers to form an assembly line to pass the brush to the chipper operators.  Our last task of the day - and smallest - is to get the front flower beds weeded. 

Anyone interested in helping us out should show up at 8am or so with work gloves, tools (clippers, chainsaw, hammers, etc), long pants and sensible footwear.

TFMC not open yet - September 4

Much to our dismay, The Free Meal Center is still not open for business.  The reason is that after nearly six months we still don’t have a building permit.  We’re caught in New Jersey’s bureacratic barb wire.  We hope to have the permit in hand later in September.

We have two big unexpected expenses - $16,000 for an indoor fire supression system (sprinklers) and $14,745 for a hood vent system for the kitchen.  Obviously, we can’t open our kitchen until we have the hood vent system.  That’s our first priority.  Until we have the sprinkler system, our occupancy capacity has been cut from 178 people to a mere 79.  This, of course, cripples our plans to have large Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day meals.  We had projected being open for four or five hours each holiday, and feeding and entertaining 400 to 600 folks.

It now looks like TFMC won’t be open until winter.  We’re especially concerned for the hundreds of folks whose summer employment ends by Halloween and their time of need - and the cold weather - arrive.

Two locals have stepped up in the last week to help us toward our goal of $14,745, then another $16,000.  Mark Collins of Rio Grande has rented the Whitesboro Rec Center for Saturday, October 30th.  He’ll be using his well-known DJ skills in hosting a Halloween party.  Tickets are just $5 and all proceeds go to TFMC.  Ebony & Ivory Beauty Salon owner Christina Sheldon is currently organizing a haircut day on a Saturday in November and she’s enlisting other county stylists and salons to participate.  Proceeds from the county-wide event go to TFMC.  Let your hairdresser know about this day and have them contact Christina at 465-3212 to participate.

If your civic group or student class would like to organize a fundraiser to help get TFMC open, give Douglas a call at 609-780-7129.

Taking the Challenge

It’s heartwarming to experience the generosity and determination of Cape May County folks.  Here are two examples. 

Sandra Novick of Swainton approached us in the summer asking what need we had.  “We need 700 concrete blocks,” was our immediate answer.  Two weeks later, the 700 blocks were at TFMC.  The first 200 came from John “Chief” DeSantis of Woodbine, who was contacted by Margie Gruff.  The other 500 were purchased with donations corraled by Sandra and friends.

Anne Sanderson of the Cape May County Association of Realtors also quizzed us on our needs.  “We need $3,000 to buy red quarry tile for the kitchen floor,” was our response. Anne went right to work by contacting all the county real estate offices and beginning a campaign to raise the money.  The donations began to come in, but a challenge to the other offices to raise $300 each by Wilsey Realty of Cape May really kicked off a flurry of donations.  Recently, the CMCAR presented TFMC with a check for $4,700, enough to not only purchase the heavy duty tile for the kitchen floor but the dry storage room and the buffet line room.

These two gals got the ball rolling on fundraising, then hundreds more answered the call.  That’s the American spirit of compassion, generosity and determination that makes our country great!

Outdoor Workday August 14

An Outdoor Work Day was held on Saturday, August 14 from 8am to 1pm.  The 28 volunteers tackled several jobs.  One group was busy disassembling a fallen down 12’x40’ shed and separating the metal to be sold for scrap and placing the rest of the debris in a 20-yard dumpster supplied by Garden State General Construction.  Another group put up vinyl siding - supplied by The Home Depot - on the north side of the building, while the bulk of the volunteers helped cut brush, saplings and vines and drag them to a pile for chipping.  The weather was beautiful, with temperatures only in the low 80’s.  It was a great day to accomplish some necessary tasks while enjoying each other’s company.

County 4-H Fair a Success

TFMC sold alot of great food at the annual 4-H Fair, easily being the busiest food booth of a dozen or so on the grounds.  A special thanks to the 18 volunteers who manned the booth, greeting each customer with smiles and fast, courteous service.

TFMC’s Food Booth at County 4-H Fair

Volunteers from The Free Meal Center are manning the largest food booth at the Cape May County 4-H Fair on Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 15-17th.  Our menu has burgers, hot dogs, french fries, cheesesteaks, meatball subs, pulled pork sandwiches, and canned cold soda, iced tea and bottled water.  Naturally, all proceeds go to TFMC.

Stop by and say hello and patronize out food booth.  We’ll also have a donation jar and be handing out our new TFMC pamphlet.

It’s Been a Great Week - July 1, 2010

The past week found TFMC getting some major donations that almost completes the list of all the equipment and building supplies we need.

We needed 700 concrete blocks to build the new kitchen back wall, and Chief DeSantis, Sandra Novick and Margy Gruff came through and we have our blocks.  We also had a grill and compressor for the walk-in refrigerator donated by Louis Elwell.  The Cape May Association of Realtors has started a drive to raise the $3,000 we need to put a red quarry tile floor in the kitchen.  If you’d like to help with that, send a check to TFMC, PO Box 863, Cape May Court House, NJ  08210.

The exterior of the building is looking nice.  Our painter, Joe Nichols, has been working diligently in the hot weather to get the windows and trim painted.  The CMC Master Gardener’s Club has planted our herb and vegetable garden and things are growing profusely.  Deborah Adams has been watering and weeding the garden regularly and Barbara Clemens has been weeding all the front flower beds.

And lastly, The Free Meal Center has rented a booth at the Cape May County 4-H Fair, to be held July 15-17, Thursday-Saturday.  The food concession will be open 12 noon to 9:00pm each day and we need volunteers to man the booth, mainly taking orders and money.  You can volunteer for a few hours, or as much as you’d like.

The menu we’re offering is hamburgers, hot dogs, french fries, pulled pork sandwiches, cheesesteaks, and meatball sandwiches, and soda and iced tea.  If you are interested in helping with this fundraiser, email us at info@FreeMealCenter.com or call Douglas Jewell at 609-780-7129.  If you know folks who might be interested but don’t have internet access, pass the word.

“More Than Just Lunch” - Our Vision for TFMC

Up until now, The Free Meal Center has only talked about the lunches we will be serving Monday through Saturday, plus breakfast on Saturdays.

Now, the rest of the story.

TFMC intends to be much more.  With our two dining rooms able to handle 90, we have plenty of room to accommodate banquets, dinner parties, business breakfasts and group meetings as an income source.  Fundraisers in our building will include a family ice cream night, pre-teen night, karaoke night, trivial pursuit and chess competitions, chef competitions between area high schools, and in the off-season, chef competitions between local restaurants.  We also have cooking classes.  Out back on our 1-acre lawn we will host chicken barbeques, clam bakes, movie nights, kids field days, and family activities.

Our educational slate will include professionals offering advice and instruction on health, food, finances, jobs, careers, and family matters.  These seminars and consultations will take place before and after lunch and in the early evenings to anyone seeking help.

TFMC wants to do more than serve lunch.  We want to truly make a difference in people’s lives.

Two New Volunteer Directors

TFMC is proud to announce that two of the three Volunteer Director positions have been filled.  Frank Bowker is the new Volunteer Director of Fundraising.  Frank handled the same position for Camden County Habitat for Humanity and was on the Board at the South Jersey Food Bank.  Al Kalish is the Volunteer Director of Food Acquisition.  Al owned the local Dominos Pizzas and has vast experience in the field of food.

That leaves just the Volunteer Director of the Site as the sole position to be filled.  If you’d like to know more about this Directorship, give Douglas a call at 609-780-7129.

Gardeners Needed

We need someone (or a group) to take over care of our landscaping beds in front of the building.  Responsibilities would include watering the new shrubs and plants, plus weed control.  The weeds could be controlled by either laying down landscaping cloth and more mulch or by physically pulling the weeds.  Let us know if you are interested.

Workday - May 15

Volunteers completed several tasks on the 3rd workday.  The area inside the stockade fence was rototilled and raked out in preparation of planting an herb and vegetable garden.  About 30 or so herb and vegetable starter plants were brought by volunteers to be planted.  Volunteers also painted the 23 parking curbs a highly-visible yellow and painting was begun on some of the picnic tables.  The weekend also saw the last pile of recycled concrete spread out on the parking lot and the donation of a commercial ice machine for our kitchen.

Kitchen Equipment Needed

Most of the commercial kitchen equipment we need has been donated, however there are a few lacking. To fill out our kitchen we need: a hood vent (12’ or longer), a steamer, a dishwasher, a grease trap, and a compressor for our walk-in refrigerator.

Open House / Volunteer Gathering & Sign-up / Workday

Mark your calendar for Saturday, May 15th.  The Free Meal Center will be a beehive of activity from 9:00am to 2:00pm that day. 

An Open House will give the general public a chance to share our vision for Cape May County’s first-ever daily soup kitchen.  Folks can tour the building and grounds to see firsthand how we are transforming an unused former restaurant into an attractive and functioning meal center.  Anyone interested can get information about becoming a volunteer.

The Volunteer Gathering will give any of the 160 volunteers already on-board a chance to share their ideas for the building, grounds, operations, or fundraisers.  The volunteers haven’t gotten together since winter, so this is an opportunity to re-connect and see the building renovations since then.

The Workday will include painting 5 picnic tables, staining 2 picnic tables, removing a stockade fence, and hauling the remains of a fallen down shed into a dumpster.  We may come up with a few other outdoor projects.  Whether you’d like to help out for a little while or all day, we appreciate your effort.  You can also just watch or bring food or beverages for the hungry workers.  No matter what your level of involvement, we’d enjoy the pleasure of your company.  For more info, or to get an idea of what tools or refreshments to bring, call Douglas Jewell at 609-780-7129.

TFMC is officially a 501(c)(3)

The Free Meal Center received great news today, May 5, 2010.  The Internal Revenue Service has recognized us a 501(c)(3), meaning we have tax exempt status and we’ve been classified as a public charity.  We are now qualified to receive tax deductible bequests and gifts, plus we can now apply for grants - an important fundraising avenue that hasn’t been available to us up until now.  The 501(c)(3) is retroactive to January 25, 2010, the day we officially incorporated as a non-profit organization in the state of New Jersey.

Now that we have the ability to apply for grants, we need volunteer grant writers to assist us in searching out the types of grants that apply to our charitable endeavour and then help us write the grant proposals.  If you have expertise in grant writing or know someone who does, let us know.

Workday - April 24, 2010

Over 50 kids and adults did a great job on-site.  Boy Scout Troop 79 of Upper Township assisted Ben Weisberg with his Eagle Scout civic project and The Jesus Christ Church of Latter Day Saints (Mormons), led by Tom and Pam Berry, put in a workday.

Ben’s project began by transforming our overgrow, out-of-control flower beds in front of the building into a thing of beauty.  They removed the tumbling brick retaining wall and replaced it with an engineered masterpiece of 6"x6” posts.  The beds were prepared for drip irrigation lines, then donated landscaping trees, shrubs and plants were placed in.  It was a lot of work and next weekend the project will be completed.

The Mormons multi-tasked, with one group painting four rooms inside the building while others worked outside staining stockade fences, cutting and hauling brush, repairing picnic tables, and securing the main signage by the highway.  Several folks began the day by hauling demolition debris from a dining room to the dumpster.

Not only was the day a success work-wise, but the comraderie amongst the groups and compassion for our mission was enlightening.  Thank you to all of you wonderful folks, who ranged in age from 6 to 60.

The icing on the cake was the news coverage we received from NBC-40 TV (view video here), which ran footage and a story by Dan Carrigan that night on the 11pm News; plus the interviews and photos by Editor Al Campbell of the Cape May County Herald and Managing Editor Christopher South of the Cape May Star and Wave.  We look forward to reading their stories in this week’s newspapers.

Progress Report - April 22, 2010

Our vision of the interior of the building has changed since we took possession on March 15.  We have decided to eliminate the walls between the first and second dining rooms, and the second and third dining rooms, effectively giving us one large dining room that will seat about 100 people.  This will also help us generate more money, as some outside groups have already expressed interest in holding breakfast or dinner meetings at our facility.  We also have the other dining room on the south side of the building that will seat 30 or more, and it too can be used by private groups.  The revenue we realize from these bookings will help feed the needy lunch Monday through Saturday, plus breakfast on Saturday.

We have also decided to convert the office into the handicap bathroom we’re required by law to provide.  The room is about 8’x10’, giving plenty of room.  We’re also changing the entrance to the ladies room, which is located right next to the new handicap bathroom.  The entrance door will now be in the central hallway instead of in the dining room, giving more privacy and allowing us to place two extra tables in the dining room.

The kitchen is also undergoing a radical makeover.  The rear portion of the kitchen, which will contain all the cooking equipment, needs a higher ceiling.  The 8’ ceilings are insufficient and don’t enough leave room to put in the hood vent system.  So we’re tearing down the decaying rear wall of the kitchen and replacing it with a concrete block wall 10’ high and 40’ long.  This will also make our building safer as far as having fire walls near the cooking area.  A new roof in this section of the kitchen is part of the project.

We are already making progress on sprucing up the back yard.  Most of the trees and limbs damaged in the February snowstorm have been removed.  The old turkey coop, which collapsed from the snow weight, will be next to be dismantled and sent to the landfill.  Our idea for the backyard is to have rows of picnic tables, eventually 30 or 40.  In the warm months, we can host chicken barbecues and clam bakes and such as money raisers.  The area is a half acre, so there’s plenty of space to host a couple hundred folks.  We’ll also have a small stage for musicians, a disk jockey, or speaker.

With all that we’re planning, the implemention will take all the spring and part of the summer.  Our realistic “grand opening” is now most likely going to be in the mid-summer.  In the long run, getting the building and grounds done right the first time will pay dividends and make our facility one that the citizens of Cape May County can be proud of.

Yard Sale & Bake Sale a Success!

Our first-ever yard sale and bake sale March 27th brought in over $1,000.  Thank you to the 30 volunteers who helped set up and run the event.  A special thanks to Board of Director member Kathleen Matthews, who organized and took care of every detail.  And thanks to all the caring folks who donated items and those delicious goodies.

We Need: 

Electricians and folks to build us picnic tables!  If your child is in shop class in school, see if their class might be willing to build us some picnic tables.  We hope to have 15 picnic tables out back by the time we open and 30-40 eventually.  We have outdoor summer events planned and picnic tables are a key to their success.  Call Douglas at 609-780-7129.