×

Soup Kitchen to continue serving Wheeling

TAKE-HOME FOOD PROVIDED — The Soup Kitchen of Greater Wheeling is continuing its work to serve those in need, by providing take-home food for its patrons. -- Staff photo

WHEELING — The Soup Kitchen of Greater Wheeling will continue to serve take home food to the needy every day, but it is closing its dining room due to coronavirus concerns.

In addition, the “As You Like It” catering business in Wheeling and owner Bob Bailey is offering to provide meals to any Ohio County child who might go without food as schools close.

The soup kitchen will continue to serve family-style and meals for individuals from its vestibule between the hours of 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., said Becky Shilling-Rodocker, executive director of The Soup Kitchen of Greater Wheeling.

She plans to have a variety of soups available during the week to go along with dinners, which will include a meat, a fruit, and a vegetable in addition to a potato offering.

There will be enough provided to serve entire families.

Meals for individuals, meanwhile, still will come with a full quart of soup for eating later, she said.

“We are going to close the dining room, but we will still have homemade meals and harvested foods,” she said. “We will always have food available at the food kitchen.”

Families with children also will receive “a survival kit,” according to Shilling-Rodocker.

The kits will include items to eat at home, such as granola, lunch meat, bread and cookies.

“It’s to help keep the kids calm,” she said.

Individuals who are most at risk of getting sick if they go out can arrange for someone to pick up their dinner for them, Rodocker said.

In addition, working parents can arrange for their children to come pick up the family’s dinner if they can’t come during available hours.

“We’ll do that for the first week and see where we are,” she said. “We’ll take it week-by-week, and make sure we have food for as long as it goes on.”

Bailey, meanwhile, has offered to take children in need a meal if they have no other means of getting one that day.

“People will have to reach out,” he said. “This is for students not getting fed at home and need something.”

Those who know of a child in need should call him at (304) 242-2811.

Bailey, who has been a caterer for 27 years, is well-versed in providing lunches to school children. He caters the lunches for students at local Montessori learning centers.

He said he will provide a meal with vegetables, fruit, a meat, and a potato or pasta.

“Some children only get one meal a day, and it is provided by the schools,” he said. “We can provide them at least one balanced meal a day, and something they need.”

(King can be contacted at jking@theintelligencer.net)

NEWSLETTER

Today's breaking news and more in your inbox

I'm interested in (please check all that apply)
Are you a paying subscriber to the newspaper? *

Starting at $4.73/week.

Subscribe Today