lunch for everyone
The paved square in front of the red brick church is lined with wooden tables and benches. Trees provide shade. In addition, helpers have set up a flea market with used clothes, crockery and games. Others fill boxes for food distribution.
Every Thursday from 12 p.m., everyone and every woman is invited to the “Lunch for All” at the United Methodist Church of Christ on Merianplatz in Frankfurt am Main. The initiative, which is run by volunteers, celebrates its 20th anniversary on Saturday.
The team
In the kitchen behind the church hall, Uli Bechthold directs with a steady hand. The white-bearded retired chef has enjoyed cooking for 150 to 170 guests once a week for ten years, he says. He can rely on a well-established team of four retired helpers: “They’re really good,” praises Bechthold.
Assistant cook Hans Stehling has been happy to be there for six to seven years. “Life is so beautiful that I want to give something back to others,” says the former spokesman. Bärbel Lampe, the only woman in the kitchen, also enjoys the work. “Me and my husbands are a beautiful community,” she says.
The around 25 helpers work hand in hand as a matter of routine. At 6.30 a.m. the first people start sorting the deliveries from the table, cleaning and chopping vegetables and fruit. There are two dishes, one with meat and one vegetarian. The four-person serving team sorts unneeded vegetables, fruit, pasta or dairy products into boxes for food distribution. A take away portion is available for one euro.
The Idea
The idea for the “lunch for all” came from a former pastor of the United Methodist church, as the current pastor Uwe Saßnowski explains. As an alcoholic, the founder himself lived on the streets for a while. The “lunch table for everyone” should help people in need, get them out of their loneliness and break through social walls. “Like a small party in the middle of the week,” says Sassnowski.
The lunch table is mainly financed by the income from the flea market, and around ten sponsors also transfer money. The team buys meat and fish in addition to the Tafel donations. The 40 to 45 volunteers donated their skills and time.
At twelve o’clock sharp, the tables are occupied by around 80 guests. For the price of one euro they got food stamps. On this day there is either chicken thighs with rice or dumplings with zucchini and vegetables, both dishes with salad and dessert. Before standing in line, Pastor Uwe Saßnowski reminds us of the shared meal between Jesus and the tax collector Zacchaeus (Luke 19).
“God sits at the table with us,” he explains. “Wouldn’t it be nice if we could reconcile and have fellowship with each other?”
The guests applaud.
The visitor
Most of the visitors are elderly. Hans Brost is a regular guest. The merchant had to give up his original job and fell ill. Despite 47 years of work, he only gets a small pension, he says. He also goes cleaning for old people. Manuela Gärtig has also become unemployed due to her illness and the consequences. She says she needs food donations for her unemployment benefit II.
“When I first came to lunch, I cried because I was ashamed,” she says. “Now I’m really happy to come.”
Elsa only uses her first name, she is a student and is here for the first time. The people are very nice and the food is good, she says. Because of her migraines, she is currently unable to work, so lunch brings financial relief.
Rita, with make-up and smartly dressed, is at the flea market. “I wear everything second-hand, I don’t need any shopping malls,” she says. “It’s sustainable.” She used to work in management consulting, today she only gets a small pension. As a guest for eight years, she finds the lunch table “a really great institution”. “First I was a bit ashamed, now I belong,” she says.
Other guests come because they like the lunch menu and want to support it. Ilse is a social worker, she buys at the flea market and donates. “I’m interested in being among the people I work with,” she says. Theresia Eichler from the neighborhood has been donating for lunch for twelve years. “The food is always good, just like at home,” she says. The older guests are also grateful for conversations.
“I find the work with the volunteers and guests to be very satisfying,” summarizes Pastor Sassnowski. “You can see that you can make a difference.” Non-congregational guests said, “This is my church.” Perhaps the “lunch table for everyone” points to a new form of church in the future, the pastor ponders.
2023-07-22 12:02:25
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