What's New
Finding Love at a Soup Kitchen
Chocolate. Flowers. Sappy cards. These are the usual suspects when trying to woo someone.
But did you ever think that hairnets, committee meetings and little bottles of shampoo could set the stage for romance?
Geoff first came to Miriam’s Kitchen as a breakfast sous chef, racing around the kitchen to ensure meals were prepared on time and to perfection for our homeless guests.
Kristi spent her time at “the front of the house” handing out much needed toiletries and chatting with guests who joined us for breakfast.
Meet Our Partners: Theater J
Yesterday afternoon, 15 of our guests participated in a discussion about The Religion Thing, a play they saw last week at Theater J.
Homelessness Down Nationally, But Up 5% In DC
Last week, we shared with you the The National Alliance to End Homelessness' new report, The State of Homelessness in America 2012 (you can view the highlights here.)
This week, we'd like to share with you the trends from DC as well as what we're seeing at Miriam's Kitchen.
Here's what's happening in DC:
Homelessness Down 1% but Outlook Bleak
The National Alliance to End Homelessness has just released its report, The State of Homelessness in America 2012, and we'd like to share some of the findings from their examination of homelessness between 2009-2011.
A few of the highlights:
Five Questions For Our Board Chair
The new year has brought many additions to Miriam's Kitchen (shiny new oven coming soon!) and one that we're especially excited about is our new Board Chair.
Nicole Levine has been a member of the Miriam's Kitchen family for nearly 15 years and took the reins from outgoing Board Chair Vincent Renner on January 1st.
Nicole sat down with us for an interview this week, and we're proud to officially introduce her to you today.
Q: When did you get involved with Miriam's Kitchen, and what prompted your involvement?
Our Top Ten New Year's Resolutions
We're just 5 days into 2012 and already many of our new year's resolutions have been broken. (Working with really talented chefs who make amazing food will do that.)
But, we've managed to keep a few so far and thought by making them public we might be held even more accountable for our resolutions this year.
So without further ado, here are ten of our new year's resolutions:
1. 'I resolve to find more local poets willing to come to Miriam's Kitchen and share their work with our guests.' --MK Deputy Director Catherine Crum
A Look Back at 2011
All of us at Miriam's Kitchen have been impacted by your generosity this year.
From the homeless men and women who join us every day for a healthy meal and support services, to the volunteers who have the great opportunity to work with our guests because of your support--you have changed lives.
As we prepare to ring in the new year, we want to take a moment to let you know just how much your support really means to us.
Here are just 3 of the life-changing events you helped make possible in 2011:
Meet Florence: A Life You Helped Change
Florence first came to us four years ago. She was homeless and living under a bridge just a few miles from Miriam's Kitchen.
For the first year or so, Florence would come for breakfast, eat and leave. A debilitating mental illness and a history of trauma left her feeling distrustful of others, and even our Case Managers couldn't always connect with her.
They knew that having safe, reliable housing would have a big impact on her life though, and worked tirelessly to find a place for Florence to call her own.
Our Favorite Holiday Gifts
Giving is a very personal act. Whether from an individual, company or foundation, the gifts we receive here at Miriam’s Kitchen often reflect the donor’s personality.
What we like so much about the holidays (other than the food, of course) is the unique ways in which people choose to give gifts.
Here are a few of the most creative gifts making a difference in our guests' lives this year:
Four Things We Learned From Zappos.com
A few weeks ago, the management staff of Miriam’s Kitchen traveled to Las Vegas to learn about developing a strong values-driven organizational culture.
Why Las Vegas? It’s the home of Zappos.com, an online shoe and clothing store known for its impeccable customer service. They also have a training program called Zappos Insights for organizations looking to improve their business by developing a great culture.
Here’s a bit of what we learned:
