Parish ‘Vineyard’ Lunch Scheme

In the leafy lanes of East Sheen it is easy to forget that there are many people with deep social needs around. We live in a society with safety nets, and the safety nets have some holes. There is a deep philosophical argument about what the state should do to care for people in need, and how much ‘the community’ should do. And while people discuss, some deeply needy people slip further into need.

The Sunday Lunch scheme has been going for many years, circulating round churches in the Richmond and Barnes area. Three times a year a team of dedicated volunteers provide lunch for people at St Mary’s. The last lunch (in November) fed about thirty people of all sorts. Some are lonely, some homeless, some with learning difficulties or psychiatric problems. They are people whom you wouldn’t notice on the street, just ordinary people, but many of them have had grim lives as the safety nets of family, work and state slipped.

I sat and chatted with a few: one or two said this was the first decent meal they had had in a week; others really valued the friendship of those they meet week by week as they go around the different churches; some were people coping well, yet lacking in the warmth of a supporting family or community.

But for the helpers these guests really matter. They remind us that the virtue of caring  for  the  needy  is  something  we can do. It is not feeding starving natives in a far off and dusty country; it is giving an opportunity to express care and support for people whose lives have not worked out as well as mine.

The food is not the most important thing. It is the human warmth, the expression that everyone matters, and that Christ calls us to spend time and effort in making other people’s lives that much more comfortable.

Brenda  Morris  would  welcome  any  helpers: the  band  of  cooks,  waiters,  and  washers-up would love to have your support!   

Do contact Brenda on:     8876 2037, or email  Brenda Morris

Stephen Griffith