BETHLEHEM, Pa. — At West Side Moravian Church in Bethlehem, the latest mission is to nourish the bodies of community members in need as well as their souls.
Essentials Café, the church's latest ministry, will provide breakfast and lunch from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m., five days each week, Pastor Tammie Rinker announced.
The program, which will launch in late spring, will be a pay-what-you-can format. Attendees without the means to pay for either some or any for meals still will be invited to partake of the food and drinks inside the single brick townhouse on the church grounds at 418 Third Ave.
- West Side Moravian Church's Essentials Café will provide breakfast and lunch five days a week to folks, regardless of their ability to pay
- Local residents of any income level are invited
- Folks of greater means are asked to pay and also to donate a bit extra to defray costs
“We want people to come in and bring a friend for breakfast and lunch who might not be able to pay for a meal,” Rinker said. “Have something to eat, have some coffee, and leave a donation on their way out, if they can.
"The café will be a space where people can come in and be part of a community; there’s so much loneliness out there. People can come inside and be treated with dignity.”
The inspiration
The idea for the Essentials Café was inspired by similar community nourishment outreach programs, Rinker noted: Hope Lutheran Church in Reading and the Tricklebee Café in Milwaukee.
“We were moved to start our project because of the great work we saw with those others,” she said. “They address the underserved areas of the community.
“We went to the one in Reading to make our people here see that this is love in action. Our café team is made up of people from different congregations. We went back with some church leaders to show them how vital cafés can be.”
The seeds for Essentials Café were planted during the summer of 2021.
“We thought we could do something cooperatively to feed, care, and support our community,” Rinker said. “A couple years ago, we worked to build a halfway house. But we wanted to do something that continues helping people each day. It bubbled up from that.”
There's a need
Dawn Fenner, a member of the Essentials Café team, said there's a need in Bethlehem for such an establishment.
"The café will be a space where people can come in and be part of a community; there’s so much loneliness out there. People can come inside and be treated with dignity.”West Side Moravian Church Pastor Tammy Rinker
“There are a lot of food-insecure folks here,” she said. “They could be street people, or working poor families making $14 an hour looking to make ends meet, or elderly people on a fixed income who don’t have enough money by the end of the month, or a college student in need or a single mom stressed out because of money. Anyone who needs help to get by.
“But it’s important we have people who can pay and donate a little extra. We asked for help with the upstart costs for a lawyer and a contractor for a ramp to make the place ADA compliant. We’ve pursued grants. We always need new sources of income.”
Open to all in need
Both Rinker and Fenner emphasized the Essentials Café is open to all who need it.
“If you have five dollars in your pocket, you can put that in,” Fenner said. “If you have a dollar, you can put that in. If you have nothing, don’t put anything in and nobody will know.
"Everyone is treated equally. We’re here for people who need us.”
While the Essentials Café is months from opening its doors, a preview of the establishment was held Saturday.
“We wanted to show everyone that this is our work space,” Rinker said. “We still have quite a bit of work to do. But we’re working doggedly.
“I plan to eat there and donate. We are hoping folks will participate with us. This is very much about serving our neighbors and loving our community.”
