March 7, 2008

Cathedral Kitchen receives gift to establish endowment

Cathedral Kitchen and Food Pantry volunteers, from left, Immaculate Heart of Mary parishioner Rick Sparks of Indianapolis and Our Lady of Mount Carmel parishioners Sally Dennis and Deanna Reckelhoff of Carmel, Ind., in the Lafayette Diocese, prepare food for homeless and low-income people on Nov. 16, 2005, at the ministry’s location at 14th and Pennsylvania streets in Indianapolis. (File photo by Mary Ann Wyand)

Cathedral Kitchen and Food Pantry volunteers, from left, Immaculate Heart of Mary parishioner Rick Sparks of Indianapolis and Our Lady of Mount Carmel parishioners Sally Dennis and Deanna Reckelhoff of Carmel, Ind., in the Lafayette Diocese, prepare food for homeless and low-income people on Nov. 16, 2005, at the ministry’s location at 14th and Pennsylvania streets in Indianapolis. (File photo by Mary Ann Wyand)

Cathedral Kitchen and Food Pantry, a ministry of SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral Parish in Indianapolis, recently received an anonymous $15,000 gift for the purpose of establishing an endowment to support the ministry’s service to poor and homeless people in Indianapolis.

Income from the endowment’s investment with the archdiocesan Catholic Community Foundation will provide supplemental funding for the Cathedral Kitchen’s regular operation.

Started in the 1930s during the Great Depression, the Cathedral Kitchen and Food Pantry is now located at 1350 N. Pennsylvania St. at the former Cathedral Grade School building.

The Cathedral Kitchen serves about 100 hot meals a day, six days a week, and the Food Pantry provides assistance for 200 households each week.

Volunteers from around the city work in teams to raise funds, procure food, prepare and serve meals, and maintain the facility.

Dr. Margie Pike, director of the Cathedral Kitchen, noted that “the Cathedral Kitchen and Food Pantry truly provide extraordinary opportunities to live out Christ’s message to serve the poor and needy with nourishment, dignity and love.”†

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