St. Michael's Kitchen Upgrade 2025

Help us expand our community kitchen to better serve our neighbors

A lifeline to fight food insecurity

Rain or shine, our Saturday Kitchen meal and grocery program offers crucial support for neighbors in need. It’s also a place of respect, caring and collaboration.

  • Over 17,000 meals served in 2024
  • 350+ meals every week —More than twice as many as pre-pandemic
  • Over 35 weekly volunteers
  • Costs more than $130K per year to operate
  • More than 40+ years of continuous operation

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Obsolete facilities are stretched to the limit

The basic kitchen design dates from 1948:

  • Too cramped

  • No more stovetop — because of City regulatory issues — so we are a soup kitchen that can’t even make soup

  • Limited food storage, so we can’t bulk-buy fresh fruits and vegetables

The kitchen was never meant for the current volume, which is unsustainable.

Our best solution is a new commercial kitchen

This means meeting tough City code requirements. Basically, everything must change:

  • New fire-suppression and air-management systems
  • New chimney

  • Doubling our current kitchen/pantry/storage area

  • New floor, cabinets, walls, ceiling, drains, sinks, dishwasher and hot water supply
  • New equipment

We will add needed capacity and efficiency

  • Consolidate work spaces

  • Modernize equipment, including new stove

  • Create a pass-through directly from the kitchen to the bagging area
  • Increase freedom of movement in the kitchen
  • Elevate sanitation standards
  • Expand food storage and refrigeration, including walk-in fridge/freezer

It will cost over $2 million to install a commercial kitchen in our old building.

  • Substantial funding has already been assembled, but we have a long way to go
  • We would not do this project if we did not have growing pains — In 2024, we again
    broke our record for meals served
See the floor plans

Ready to help us help others?

Donate through our 501(c)(3):

  • Eligible for employer matching grants
  • St. Michael’s Community Programs, Inc.:
    EIN 06-1551694
  • Online or by check — specify “DWO—Kitchen Campaign” as the purpose
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Donor Advised Funds:

  • Use EIN 13-1656684 and indicate “New Kitchen” as the purpose

Contact a Doors Wide Open campaign chairperson:

We are making progress, but there is a long way to go...

How much should you give?

Giving capacity is very individual. And you may already support numerous causes.

Please dig deep to help this one-time community project happen.

Maybe surprise yourself!