The Heart & Soul Charitable Fund presented the Forrest Church Award to
Dr. Paul Farmer at its Annual Gala at Christie's, Rockefeller Center, on Tuesday, January 17th, 2012. Read the full article here...

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• Feeding Programs
• The Navigators USA
• Booker T. Washington Learning Center
• Girl Scouts Troops in East Harlem
• Other Community-Based Programs

Feeding Programs

Volunteers prepare a meal

The Heart & Soul Charitable Fund provides funding to two outstanding meal programs feeding over 26,000 meals a year:

Monday Night Hospitality has been offering a sit down dinner for over three decades. We now serve an average of 203 guests every Monday evening (including holidays) nearly triple the guests prior to September 11 and more than any other local church or institution on the Upper East Side in Manhattan.

The meal is a full course dinner - with soup from a local restaurant (Brasserie Julian). Continuous coffee and tea service is provided and guests are served at their seats.  We are able to serve a fabulous white table cloth meal for under $5.00 a person!

Every Monday 50 to 60 volunteers share in an event that celebrates our ability to provide fresh food, companionship, understanding and love.  The meal and the time donated by our volunteers are offered to people regardless of race, creed, gender, sexual orientation or religion.  No one is turned away and all are treated with dignity and respect.  The meal is part of the goal of making our guests feel special in a city where those in need so often are ignored.

Despite the strong volunteer participation, cost of food ingredients and related costs associated with the program (security, rent) continue to rise. Heart & Soul is the primary source of funds for this program.

For the past 20 years, 52 Fridays a year, the Friday Lunch Program has offered a nourishing meal to hungry people who live in the community, every Friday.

The people served are not necessarily homeless, they just do not have enough money for food. Most are unemployed or disabled or receive a very small Social Security check. For many, lunch each Friday has been an ongoing event for the past ten years. In addition, the inclusion of local school volunteers from Brearley, Nightingale-Bamford and Allen-Stevenson helps promote community service and helps make Friday Lunch an integral part of our community.

The Heart & Soul auction accounts for over 90% of funding for this program. Your generosity will help Friday Lunch continue its efforts to serve lunch to 130 people every Friday.