This Newsletter is Dedicated to

Walter L. Lynn

4/9/1925 – 10/16/2006

One of the Founding Fathers of the

Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries

Walter was one of a kind. He truly walked the talk. He was one of the founders of the Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries, and will be deeply missed by many, many people. Walter did good deeds that others didn’t know he was involved in. He was admired by many, and always had a big smile and twinkling eyes for all. To Midge, his wife of 57 years, we send our deepest and sincerest sympathy.

Appreciation Celebration

Tuesday October 24^th was our annual Volunteer Appreciation event. It was held this year at Water’s Edge, and we had a fantastic turnout. If you missed it this year, please join us next time to celebrate all the wonderful work you do!

Special Thank you to our Garden Folks

Thank you to all the volunteers who toiled so hard to provide such wonderful and bountiful harvests! This year 5,740 pounds of fresh produce was provided to our pantry clients! You will be deeply missed in the coming cold months!

Pantry Letters of Appreciation

Dear (Pantry Manager),

        I just wanted to take a moment to say Thank-You. You and the rest of the volunteers have turned what can be an embarrassing and tough situation into a warm and inviting experience with kind and smiling faces.

        When my son and I come in, we are greeted by friendly faces. I don’t feel uncomfortable, I feel grateful.  The only questions I hear are sincere ones about our health or if there is anything more you can do for us.

        When I get in my car to go home and put away the groceries, I have tears in my eyes.  I thought they would have been from the shame of needing help but, that couldn’t be further from the truth. My tears are of joy. I leave having a feeling of goodness inside, instead of shame; I feel a sense of pride.

        I can’t really touch upon just how helpful this program is for my family of four or the appreciation we feel for you and the other volunteers.  You all talk to me as an equal, a person, and a friend.

        I just wanted to Thank-You for all you all do. Please share this letter with the other volunteers and let them know how much of a difference they all make. Thank-You All so much!

                                Sincerely

                                A happy & thankful family

Dear (Pantry Manager),

        Thank you so much for your help in my time of need. It’s nice to know someone cares about the small things like soup and pudding that go down easy when you don’t feel like eating. So I say again, Thank You & God Bless.

Matching Gift Programs

Many employers offer volunteer grant programs. These companies will donate money to the organization where an employee volunteers. There is usually a certain amount of hours per year that provides a specified amount. Please check with your employer and see if the SSKP might be eligible for a grant.

Meal Site Fellowship

Shopping, preparing, and serving the meals are only half of the service we provide. The other half is just as important – Fellowship. Thank you all so much for taking the time to sit and break bread with our clients.

Energy Assistance

Many towns provide an Energy Assistance person or their Town Social Service person to help people sign up for financial help, but if people do not know where to go or who to call, they can be referred to CRT in Middletown at 860-347-4465 or 860-343-1441. Jeana Burke-Lewis at ext. 223 is the contact Mon-Fri 8:00am-4:00pm.

Holiday Help

During the next month, the SSKP has several extra volunteer opportunities. If you or anyone you know can pitch in, it would be greatly appreciated. Please call Patty Dowling at 860-388-1988.

Covenants

Many of the faith communities that currently actively support us are joining us in reconfirming our commitment to each other by signing a covenant. We will be offering to renew these promises every year, and keep the lines of communication flowing between the faith groups and the SSKP. As of Thanksgiving we have signed covenants with the following…

                First Baptist Church of Essex

                Trinity Lutheran of Essex

                St. Paul’s Lutheran of Old Saybrook

                Deep River Baptist

                Grace Episcopal of Old Saybrook

Speaker

The Partnership Coordinator, Linda Smith completed a survey with our clients in the spring, and will speak about poverty on the shoreline to any groups that are interested. Call Lin at 860-395-5622 to schedule a date.

History

The Founders of the Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries (from the First Baptist Church in Essex) are working on developing a written history of how it all began. Keep posted for publication of this interesting story! If you were involved with the beginning years or have any information that might be helpful, please call Lin at 860-395-5622.

Bad Weather Closings

Each person in charge of a meal site, pantry, or program for the day, must make the decision in case of a storm. Follow the instructions for cancellations when calling Channel 3.

To place a closing: call 1-800-662-6505.

The SSKP code is: 780663.

The security code is: 5825.

The “closed” status code is: 2.

Please begin now to tell the clients to turn to WFSB Eyewitness News Channel 3 for cancellations.

Thanksgiving Dinner

The Grace Episcopal Church in Old Saybrook will again host the annual Thanksgiving Dinner on Thanksgiving Day at 1pm. The meal this year is again provided by volunteers from Bristol-Myers Squibb. Thank you to all those tireless workers for such a wonderful service!

Christmas Dinner

The First Church of Old Lyme, 2 Ferry Road, will again host the annual Christmas Dinner on Christmas Day, December 25^th at noon.

Ed Lyons

I was born and raised in Middletown. My wife Diane was born and raised in Meriden.

After completing my education, Wharton MBA; we were married and joined the international business community.   We have lived and worked in Brazil, Germany, Gibraltar, Spain, and Venezuela.  Prior to moving to Old Saybrook, we lived at a Marina setting…Schooner Cove…in Stamford. 

Before retiring, I worked for Verizon in NYC as a financial manager for the Advertising Group and Diane worked as a library assistant at the Ferguson Library.   Diane is also a certified grammar school teacher.

We have two young granddaughters….Caroline Branch from our Daughter, Heather, and Sarah from our son, Ian.

In my spare time when we are not in Belize or traveling,

I’m Treasurer of The Cove Condominium Association,

member of the Investment Committee of the Old Saybrook Historical Society, member of the finance committee of the Estuary,

volunteer at the Florence Griswold Museum, and a member of the Board of Directors of the Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries.

Story

A holy man was having a conversation with the Lord one day and said, “Lord, I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.”  The Lord led the holy man to two doors.  He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.  In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew which smelled delicious and made the holy man’s mouth water.  The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly.   They appeared to be famished.  They were holding spoons with very long handles that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful, but because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.  The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.  The Lord said, “You have seen Hell.”

        They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one. There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man’s mouth water.  The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking.  The holy man said, “I don’t understand.”  “It is simple,” said the Lord, “it requires but one skill.  You see, they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves.”

Highlighted Meal Site

The Baptist Church of Essex Meal Site-Mondays 5:30 to 6:30 pm-10:00 pm Prospect Street, Essex.

The Monday meal for the Shoreline Soup Kitchen is served in our Founding Church in Essex. This is the kitchen that was the original meal site.  This meal site is co-sponsored by volunteers from the Congregational Church of Essex and The Baptist Church of Essex. The many dedicated volunteers from both parishes make this a great place for a good meal and warm smiles.

SBC Community Connections

The Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries can benefit from your long distance calls! SBC has a program, Community Connections, which can be used as a fund-raiser for various organizations. If you are an SBC long distance user, all you have to do is call 1-800-635-7638 and give them the code #3967 and tell them you want to sign up for the Community Connections program to support Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries.  They will automatically credit a portion of your long distance payments to SSKP.  This is an easy way, at no cost to you, to benefit the Soup Kitchens.  Sign up today and tell all of your friends!!!

Dining Out Cards

The Dining Out Coupon Book is a fundraising project for the Shoreline Soup Kitchens & Pantries – the organization that addresses the need for food and fellowship for people along the shoreline of Connecticut.  We service 11 towns – Madison to Old Lyme and as far north as Chester.  We have 4 weekly food pantries where people can come for groceries and 8 weekly meal sites where people can come for a hot, nutritious meal. Last year we provided (at no charge) over 356,000 meals. Although we live in a beautiful, prosperous area, there are 2786 people living below the poverty level.  They must often choose between heat, healthcare, and food.

        The Dining Out Coupon Book is a project to help us to raise funds and become more visible.  We sell each book for $35.  Area restaurants join us by offering Buy One Entrée – Receive a Second Entrée for ½ price.  The cards are traditionally honored on Sunday through Thursday and are valid from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2007. 

Sixteen restaurants are part of the project this year.   Vinnie’s, Sage American,  Saybrook Point Inn, Tiberio’s, Fiore’s, Water’s Edge,  The Pattaconk 1850 Grille, the Paperback Café, the Ivory Pub, Stella D’Oro, Zhang’s, Bella Sera, The Stagecoach Grill, The Dolly Madison, Gateway to India and Maru are  all participating.

  If you would like to purchase a Dining Out Coupon Book please visit North Cove Outfitters, Old Saybrook Stop & Shop or Shear Madness.  For any additional information please feel free to contact us by telephone at 860-388-1988 or by e-mail at pdowling@shorelinesoupkitchen.org.  Thank you for your interest!

Save-A-Tree

How to Help

To volunteer, or to donate, or for any information about the Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries, please call or email Patty Dowling. Also, if you have ideas or comments about this newsletter please contact our Partnership Coordinator, Linda Smith.

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