"Warm food in cold bodies," churches help to feed the unhoused

With more snow and cold temperatures on the horizon for Wareham, community members are coming together to ensure those without a place to go are fed. 

Danny Warren, a local businessman and owner of Warren's Harborview, has been assisting the Gateway Church and the Church of the Good Shepherd to operate soup kitchens for the unhoused in Wareham. With 100 meals given away each week, according to Warren, the churches "don't have support from anyone."

"We're going to help anchor it. We're here to help, and if you [the community] can help too that would be great," Warren said. 

The Gateway Church of Onset, 301 Onset Avenue, serves meals on Tuesdays. The Church of the Good Shepherd, 74 High Street, will be serving meals on Thursdays. Both churches begin dinner at 4:30 p.m. and have a team that brings meals to unhoused encampments around town.

"There's ladies that load this food into their SUVs and drive out to these encampments in the woods. They bring warm soup and warm food. They're brave people," he said. 

Warren and his team are donating time and resources to keep the operation going. With growing needs, the biggest challenges the churches face come from space and funding. 

"It's the facilities to make the food and the money to buy the food that's the biggest issue," Warren said. 

With a few successful evenings under their belts already, Warren said he has faith in the honesty of those who will use the soup kitchens, and that the community will gather together to help. The operation is all volunteer based and makes the meals at Warren's Harborview. 

"We're trying to make a change," Warren said. "I don't know how far it’s going to get but I don't see things getting better for a long time."

As winter holds on tightly to the South Coast, Warren said those interested in helping can find him at Warren's Harborview, 59 Main Street, or reach out to the churches. His message remains to "get food to the people that need it."

"It's putting warm food in cold bodies," he said.