- Franciscan Outreach Association
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An evening at the Marquard Center
Every night of the year, at about 4:30 or 5:00 p.m., men, women and children begin to line up in the courtyard of the Marquard Center. The courtyard sits between a church built a century ago and its former school.
The yard is about four feet below street level, a strange side effect of the plan that raised the city out of the swamp upon which Chicago was built.
The old school building now holds a soup kitchen, run by Franciscan friars, caring volunteers, and staff.
The people who wait are a mixed group. Some are homeless. Others live nearby, but can't afford to buy food and pay rent. Some are on public aid; others work but can't make ends meet on their minimum wage job. They all come for one of the things that everyone needs: food.
At 5:00, each guest is given a ticket with a number on it. Once they receive a ticket, the guests come into the building or mill about in the courtyard, waiting their turn.
On several days of the week, case managers mingle with the guests. They introduce themselves and answer questions. Many guests are friendly to the case managers. They ask about housing, a substance abuse program, mental health care, or a variety of other problems. They sometimes wonder whether to trust the case manager with the painful details of their difficult lives.
Gradually, the men and women begin to see that there is hope for at least one of the problems that weighs them down. The case manager schedules appointments for during business hours, when help is just a few phone calls away.
At 5:30, the first group of 50 ticket numbers are called. In this group are families and the early birds who have been waiting the longest. As each guest comes through the door of the former gymnasium, a volunteer smiles and says hello. In the winter, the volunteer hands out a cup of coffee to the adults as soon as they come in the door.
The guests take their places at a table that is just big enough for four. They set down their bags near their chairs and greet the others who are taking their places as well.
Every table is set with four trays of food, each having a cup of coffee and a glass of milk. The food is hearty, with a main dish, a side dish, bread, and a dessert if one has been donated. Sometimes a flower in a vase decorates the center of each table.
As they settle in, mothers tell their children to eat and friends greet each other. Sometimes, strangers look at each other warily and decide how talkative they want to be. Some guests ask for water instead of milk. Others ask for and receive more bread. The trays are full to begin. After a few minutes they are nearly empty.
As each guest finishes, he or she says good-bye to the people at the table and takes his or her tray to the front of the room. The dirty dishes are set in racks and brought to the kitchen to be washed. Some guests linger at the table as long as they can, as hungry for conversation as they were for food.
As each seat opens up, another guest takes the empty place. The new guest holds up his or her dinner ticket as a silent request for a tray of food. A smiling part-time volunteer brings a tray, sets the tray down, and takes the ticket. Almost always the guest says "thank you" and means it whole heartily.
By 6:30, the last tickets have been handed out and by 6:45 the last few guests begin to eat. In an average night, 144 guests will have been served. Sometimes the total is 240, while other days it is only 110.
Sometimes the number of guests is unexpectedly high. If the food that the full-time volunteers prepared during the day runs out, the manager will always find something else to serve, even if he has to be creative.
When dinner is over and all the guests have left, the volunteers wipe down the tables and mop the floor. As the last dishes are dried and the lights turned off, the volunteers smile at the memories of the guest that said thank you with an excess of enthusiasm or the child who's eye lit up when she saw the macaroni and cheese.
The lights go off. The doors are locked. The guests have gone to wherever they go - a little healthier, a little happier, and sometimes a little bit closer to finding a way to end the disturbing circumstances that have weighed them down for years.
This is what dinner is like at the Marquard Center. Every day of the year. Rain or shine. Holidays and regular days. Without fail, we serve a nutritious dinner to the hungry, the homeless, and the poor every day. Click here to read more about our soup kitchen at the Marquard Center.
We are a small organization that needs your help. Please help us reach out to the homeless and poor of Chicago. Click here to donate now.