Idaho Falls Soup Kitchen

mission statement

It is the mission of the Soup Kitchen to provide a sanctuary where fellowship is nurtured, and a hot nourishing meal is served in an environment of respect and dignity.

history

Started in 1985, the Soup Kitchen was a vision of two members of the Episcopal Church that provided a noon time meal to the needy on weekends.  From those humble beginnings, today the Soup Kitchen is blessed with dedicated and trained teams of volunteers for every day of the year. The mission of the Soup Kitchen has grown to where it is now open seven days a week and serves over 55,000 meals a year. The history of soup kitchens in America can be traced back to the year 1929 with the effects of a growing depression.  Soup was economical because water could be added to serve more people. Soup kitchens continue to exist for the homeless and struggling families across America, providing a free hot meal that for many may be their only meal of the day.

what we do

Dedicated teams of volunteers from places as diverse as the area’s churches and service organizations, local businesses, and groups of friends or families prepare, serve, and cleanup the meal using donations of food and money provided by our generous community. We provide a free hot meal seven days a week for anyone in need.

Those served by the Soup Kitchen include the homeless, transients, low income, elderly, children, unemployed, and handicapped. No qualifications are required, no questions are asked, and no religious views are fostered. It is the mission of the Soup Kitchen to provide a sanctuary where fellowship is nurtured, and a hot nourishing meal is served in an environment of respect and dignity.

how we do it

Volunteers are the lifeblood of our organization! Every day of the year, teams of volunteers come in to prepare nutritious meals with loving hands, serve them to our patrons and clean up after. We are always looking for volunteers willing to make a 1-day-a-month commitment for the calendar year to help us prepare, serve, and clean after the noontime meal. Teams are encouraged but every hand helps! Please visit our Facebook page or email ifsoupkitchen@gmail.com

the food

We rely on donations of dollars as well as food from local vendors and grocers and partnerships with the Idaho Food Bank and the Community Food Basket – Idaho Falls to supply the food for our volunteer cooks to plan menus with. To make this possible Individual, one-time donations as well as regular monthly donations make up a large portion of our total support.

Other sources include fund raisers from church groups, civic organizations, and the United Way annual campaigns and grants. The major source of food donations comes from the annual Interfaith Community 4th of July, Boy Scout, and Mail Handlers Food Drives, individual food donations and food drives sponsored by various groups, churches, and organizations in the community. The free hot meal that we provide is simply not possible without this widespread community support.

You can learn more about how to support us here.

Meet Our Team

The Idaho Falls Soup Kitchen Board is a strong cross-representation of members from our founding faith community, our local Episcopal Church, St. Luke’s to members at large from various sectors of our community.  Meet them here!

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