There are people
in the world so hungry,
that God cannot
appear to them
except in
the form
of bread.
Mahatma Gandhi
Emmaus Ministries
A commitment to the forgotten and the faceless of society – a Christian presence and outreach in Erie, Pennsylvania since 1974.
Soup Kitchen
Food Pantry
The Companion Newsletter
|
Feb 2021
 |
Mission
Contact Information
Emmaus Ministries, Inc.
345 East 9th Street
Erie, PA 16503
Phone: 814-459-8349
Fax: 814-459-8066
Email:
Sister Mary Miller, OSB
Margaret Kloecker
Rita Scrimenti
Breanna Mekuly
Valerie Luckey
Catherine Simon
Emmaus Soup Kitchen
218 East 11th Street
Erie PA 16503
Sister Gus' Kids Cafe
310 East 10th Street
Erie PA 16503
814-878-2922
Breaking the Bread
From the Director
Sister Mary Miller
This month Benedictine Sisters celebrate the feast of our patron, Saint Scholastica. We are told that she was the twin sister of Saint Benedict and founded many monasteries for women. There is only one recorded story from her life, but we tell and retell it with relish.
For the Record
Lenten Walk Benefits Emmaus
It was a marathon and then some for Dave Piotrowicz when he walked 45 miles at the YMCA during Lent to support Emmaus Ministries and other organizations. Shortly after Christmas, Dave said that he talked to God about an idea he had, and “God answered me,” he shared. “I went to the East Side YMCA and asked if they would let me use their facility to walk laps each morning during Lent as a fundraiser.”
Starting on Ash Wednesday and ending on Good Friday, Dave ended up walking 900 laps, 300 more than originally planned. Word of mouth spread, and donations begin coming Dave’s way. More than 50 people donated to the walk, and by Easter,...
Reduce, Reuse, Recycle: Earth Day at the Kids Cafe
To celebrate Earth Day this year, the children attending the Kids Cafe practiced the three R’s: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. They created sturdy tote bags from gently worn t-shirts.
The bags were an idea of the Kids Cafe’s cook, Carly DiFuccia, who suggested this year for Earth Day we “teach the children about recycling and reusing in order to save single use plastics from going to the landfill.” The tote bags required just two items: a t-shirt and scissors. The staff precut the sleeves and neck line out of the shirts and then the children cut strips into the bottom of the shirts and tied them together. They then decorated the bags...
Dr. Mark Bloomstine Donates to Emmaus with Doctors' Day Honors
Doctors have to make hard decisions each day, but for Dr. Mark Bloomstine choosing Emmaus Ministries as the recipient of his $500 Doctors' Day gift was easy. "My wife volunteers at the soup kitchen," Dr. Bloomstine shared during an event honoring four doctors at St. Vincent's Hospital who go above and beyond to make positive contributions in their work.
Both Dr. Bloomstine and Dr. Howard Nadworny were 2020 honorees, but the hospital was unable to hold a ceremony last year due to the pandemic. This year's honorees were Dr. Ross Peterson and Dr. Wayne Jones. All four were recognized as Dr. Chris Clark, president of AHN St. Vincent's...
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Walking Together on the Road to Emmaus
Volunteers and Donors
Emmaus depends on many volunteers and donors at the food pantry, soup kitchen and Kids Cafe.Call 814-459-8349 if you would like to volunteer. Click here to make a donation.
Meet Darrell Meyers The volunteers who show up at Emmaus day in and day out create the heartbeat of the ministry. Darrell Meyers has been part of that rhythm at the soup kitchen for over two decades. |
Soup's On: An Emmaus Journal
By the Emmaus Ministries staff
March 24, 2021While serving dinner at the soup kitchen the other evening, the bell rang at the back door. That usually means someone has come to drop off a donation. The 85 year-old woman who brought the donation said, “You might need a cart. There is a lot in my car.” Pushing the cart we currently use to move boxed dinners from the serving counter to the window where we distribute them, I went outside. Inside her car were bags and bags and bags of boxed snacks, apples, oranges, pasta…“You name it,” as they say. As I brought in load after load, she said to me so sweetly, “When I have extra money, I love to go and buy food for the soup kitchen.” I thought to myself, “When I have extra money, I love to go buy a new shirt for myself.” Someone’s heart is in the right place. |
Remember Emmaus with a Memorial
We are grateful to family members who ask that memorials be made to Emmaus on the death of loved ones. Visit our secure site to offer a memorial.
+ Lillian (Lilly) E. Laukaitis
+ Constance M. Connie Zygai
+ Joseph E. Sierota
+ James V. Gray Jr.
+ David G. Chivers
+ Corinne V. Adams Farina
+ William J. Bill Flaherty Jr
+ Ronald J. Wasielewski (vol)
+ Mary Catherine Gallagher Fleming
+ Clarence J. Buck Swahn Jr. (vol)
+ Elizabeth E. Betty Farrell
Fulfill the Emmaus Wish List
You can always help us stock our shelves at the soup kitchen with ground coffee, instant tea and instant lemonade, jelly/jam, peanut butter, maple syrup, mayonnaise/miracle whip, soup, and canned fruit. We ALWAYS appreciate diapers (all sizes) and baby formula.
The Kids Cafe Store is in need of the following items:
School supplies
hand sanitizer,
Kleenex,
hair supplies (shampoo and conditioner, hair ties, brushes, picks, head bands, etc.)
Deodorant
Socks
Attention Bakers!!! We welcome homemade treats for our guests. If you're a baker, know that our Emmaus guests appreciate cookies, cakes, pies…sweets of any kind.
Call 814-459-8349 for more information or to schedule your donation.
Pray with Emmaus
Please join with the Emmaus community in reciting this prayer daily.
Prayer of St. Vincent DePaul
You will find that charity
is a heavy burden to carry,
heavier than the kettle of soup
and the basket of bread.
But you must your gentleness
and your smile keep.
Giving soup and bread
isn’t all that you can do.
The poor are your masters-
terribly sensitive and exacting
as you will see.
But the more demanding they seem
the more unjust and bitter
the more you must give them your love.