Food Service “Full stomachs lead to full hearts”– though dinner churches, food pantries, and children’s summer lunch programming. We do our best to meet needs both physical and spiritual, as well as at the individual, family and community level.

We are called to provide food, emergency relief and much more to those who have a desperate need.

Our mission is to link with churches outside our community with Clark St. and Salem of East Toledo in a manner that helps both the materially poor and the poor in spirit.

The materially poor served by our churches, clergy, lay leaders, and congregations. Their relationship with and service renews the poor in spirit to the poor through our direct ministry of teaching, encouragement, and prayer.

Ultimately, we seek to bring both benefactors and recipients to a closer union with our Lord and each other.

VOHM is God’s instrument to help the materially poor and to renew the poor in spirit.

Our ministry is a reflection of God’s unconditional love – a love that puts others first, that inspires trust and faith, and that embraces all people, regardless of race, status or creed.

Alleviating poverty in East Toledo is one of the core missions of VOHM. One of the significant difficulties that often goes along with poverty is hunger. Families who lose financial stability often have a hard time getting enough to eat, and the process of getting food stamps or other government assistance can be arduous. VOHM will collaborate with, groups that advocate on behalf of those in poverty to help them get food, shelter, and equitable legal treatment. VOHM’s goal is to improve the quality of life for all East Toledo by advancing solutions to the problem of hunger.

Because people who suffer chronic hunger don’t have the option of eating when they are hungry, they do not get enough calories, essential nutrients, or both. Hungry people have an ongoing problem with getting food to eat. They have a primary need — how to feed themselves and their children today and tomorrow. They have little energy for anything else.

Access and availability of food For many low-wage workers, retirees, people with disabilities, and their families, even careful planning cannot stretch the grocery budget throughout the month. Less expensive — and less nutritious — filler foods can keep children’s stomachs from growling, but they can’t provide what children need to grow and learn. Adults who are missing meals because they can’t afford to buy food can’t concentrate as well at work.

VOHM has a vision of East Toledo where no one goes hungry.

VOHM is committed to providing nutritious food. We envision several programs, which promote long-term solutions to hunger.

 Long-term solutions to hunger

• Community Kitchen will be a culinary job-training program for low-income and unemployed adults. Each class will equip students in cooking skills, food safety and the life skills needed to acquire and retain a job. The community kitchen prepares nutritious meals for our dinner churches worship services and other community dinner events and seeks catering opportunities.
• Healthy Habits Nutrition Education Healthy Habits is a nutrition education program for residents of East Toledo. VOHM will offer six-week classes and one-time workshops featuring live cooking demonstrations and practical advice on how to stretch the household budget by preparing healthy foods at home.
• Community Farm Community farms can grow fresh produce for hungry east siders while preserving valuable land. A volunteer coordinator will manage each of the participating sites. Throughout the growing season, the volunteer-run farms rely on schools, businesses, and civic groups, as well as families and individuals.
• After School meals and Summer Lunch programfor children under 18. In partnership with children’s hunger alliance provides after-school snacks at school along with our enrichment program. Then when summer hits and school is out, children living in poverty might not receive proper food during the day. In partnership with Connecting kids to Meals, children are fed nutritious lunches Monday thru Friday during summer break from school. We provide free, balanced meals that are designed by a nutritionist. The menus are varied. Most meals are steam-cooked to lock in nutrients without adding fat. We never offer-fried foods and the food we serve is minimally processed. We partner with Connecting Kids To Meals to provide lunches for children under the age of 18