Hot Meals Ministry
SEPTEMBER 7, 2020, IS THE 27TH ANNIVERSARY FOR OUR HOT MEALS MINISTRY
Jesus said, "For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me..." -- Matthew 25:35.
If you would like to become a part of our ministry in any way, please let us know.
*The Hot Meals Ministry is an all volunteer Ministry with no paid staff or workers.HOT MEALS MINISTRY CONTINUES TO BE EVERY MONDAY NIGHT AT 6:00PM, THOUGH WE HAVE MADE TEMPORARY MODIFICATIONS TO BETTER PROTECT OUR GUESTS AND VOLUNTEERS.
PLEASE JOIN US IF YOU WOULD LIKE A FREE MEAL.
AT THIS TIME WE ARE UNABLE TO ACCEPT DONATIONS. THANK YOU FOR CONSIDERING US.
Feeding Those Who Are Hungry in Our Community
Every week, small churches from our community come together to put Jesus' words into action in our neighborhood, by providing a free meal to anybody who needs it.
No questions asked. No red tape. No paperwork.
Some of the people who come for dinner are homeless. Some are unemployed. Many are the "working poor" of our own neighborhood who have a hard time making ends meet. A lot of our guests are children. Some are babies, who are supplied diapers, and baby food when available. Donated used clothing is also made available to our guests.
Currently, an average of 75 people from our community are served per week, with that number growing every week. This shows the need for our program is still there in these difficult financial times. No one is ever turned away.
If you are hungry, please join us this Monday at 6:00pm.
History of the Hot Meals Ministry
Since its founding in 1993; over 210,000 meals have been provided in addition to tons of used clothing, and tons of bread, toiletries, and non-perishable food.
In an age when fast food chains boast of billions of hamburgers served, this may not seem like much, but when we consider that these complete meals have been made available, free of charge to our community, by the people of small local churches who are empowered and inspired by the Gospel message, we know that we have a lot to be proud of.
Our History
The Hot Meals Ministry was founded by Paula Todd (1940-2004) of Orangethorpe Christian Church (Disciples of Christ). She saw a great need in our neighborhood and persuaded her pastor that their church should try to address that need.
Paula Todd
Four other Fullerton churches were invited to join OCC in providing a hot, nutritious meal every Monday night: First Christian Church, St. Luke Lutheran Church, Orangethorpe United Methodist Church, and Eden Presbyterian Church. Each Church served a meal on one Monday each month.
Continuing what Paula had started, in 2004 Debra Campbell (1955-2010) and Christina Campbell took over the Ministry until Debra's death in 2010. Since then, her daughter Christina continues to lead this program every week.
From Left to Right:
Debbie Campbell, Adena Bentley, Christina Campbell, Edna Skeen
As of April 2018, the Hot Meals Ministry fed its 200,000th guest under the direction of Christina Campbell.
Changes to Who Has Aided Our Ministry
After about three years, First Christian Church started its own Hot Meals Ministry in the downtown Fullerton area each Wednesday night and on January 13, 1997 was replaced by Yorba Linda Presbyterian Church. In February, 2006, St. Luke Lutheran resigned due to lack of volunteers and was replaced in January 2007 by Anaheim Christian Reformed Church. In March 2015, Eden Presbyterian church moved to another location and was replaced by Anaheim Free Methodist Church. In 2017, Orangethorpe United Methodist resigned due to lack of volunteers. In June 2019, Anaheim Christian Reform separated from our program to start their own ministry on Skid Row.
If your church would be interested in joining our ministry, feel free to send us an email.
DUE TO COVID-19 WE ARE ONLY GIVING A TO-GO HOT MEAL. WE ARE NOT ABLE TO GIVE OUT CLOTHING AND OTHER ITEMS THAT WE WOULD NORMALLY GIVE TO OUR GUESTS. THEREFORE, WE ARE NOT CURRENTLY ABLE TO ACCEPT YOUR DONATIONS. WE APPRECIATE YOUR CONSIDERING US FOR YOUR DONATIONS AND WE HOPE TO ACCEPT YOUR DONATIONS AGAIN IN THE NEAR FUTURE.