Donuts and coffee at Sunday School/ Church
- Thread starter Burn1986
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This is so true.
I was once part of a church that started out with a regular coffee and donut offering before the service... But it kept growing bigger and bigger until it was a full-on breakfast buffet (pastries, cookies, oatmeal, juice, milk, cereal, breads, fresh fruit, several types of coffee, hot tea, iced tea, hot chocolate...)
Word got out, and since it was in a poor area, people who weren't members started dropping off their kids for a free breakfast and 90 minutes of free babysitting (the parents would leave them there without attending themselves.)
People who WERE members of the church would take enough food for their morning meal and another on the go, saying, "I tithe to the church, so I'm already paying for this," and would treat it as a buffet.
It wasn't hard to predict that the church eventually found itself going bankrupt paying for all this food. And as is usual in such situations, you had one side saying this was a spiritual opportunity to reach the community (because even if the parents didn't stay, maybe it was getting through to their kids,) while on the other hand, you had the practical side saying, "We can't afford to keep doing this and keep the lights on."
Workers in charge of running the cafe wanted to cut down (offering only donuts and cutting them in half, etc.) but the pastor and spiritual leaders "didn't want to look cheap," refusing to cut back.
I wound up moving to another area so I don't know how it turned out. Last I heard, the church is still going, so I'm assuming they found some sort of compromise.
I was once part of a church that started out with a regular coffee and donut offering before the service... But it kept growing bigger and bigger until it was a full-on breakfast buffet (pastries, cookies, oatmeal, juice, milk, cereal, breads, fresh fruit, several types of coffee, hot tea, iced tea, hot chocolate...)
Word got out, and since it was in a poor area, people who weren't members started dropping off their kids for a free breakfast and 90 minutes of free babysitting (the parents would leave them there without attending themselves.)
People who WERE members of the church would take enough food for their morning meal and another on the go, saying, "I tithe to the church, so I'm already paying for this," and would treat it as a buffet.
It wasn't hard to predict that the church eventually found itself going bankrupt paying for all this food. And as is usual in such situations, you had one side saying this was a spiritual opportunity to reach the community (because even if the parents didn't stay, maybe it was getting through to their kids,) while on the other hand, you had the practical side saying, "We can't afford to keep doing this and keep the lights on."
Workers in charge of running the cafe wanted to cut down (offering only donuts and cutting them in half, etc.) but the pastor and spiritual leaders "didn't want to look cheap," refusing to cut back.
I wound up moving to another area so I don't know how it turned out. Last I heard, the church is still going, so I'm assuming they found some sort of compromise.
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One of my home groups in AA was kind of sort of maybe like that. We had a budget of $50.00 a week to buy goodies to go with the coffee, starting with dozens and dozens of bagels accompanied by differently flavoured cream cheeses, and lots of fresh fruit, which we would cut up while belting out tunes along with an oldies goldies sixties' radio station. Well, that's how it was done while I was one of the volunteers... the meeting started at 10 am on Saturday morning, and I would pick up my fellow volunteer at 8 am to do the weekly shopping for these goodies. We did hope to snag the stragglers who came for the food and coffee, and it was a popular meeting besides all that, also, or possibly in part because of all that. We had approximately two hundred in attendance every week! And we did all enjoy the goodies...
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It was in a poor area, with people (and many members) having nothing (or being unwilling) to bring or make. It was also before services, so they needed quick things to clean up and put away. I don't think the church had a full kitchen to be able to store anyone's leftovers.
And the majority of people showing up, especially the non-members it was attracting, were there to get, not give.
The main objective became feeding their kids/families for free.
And the outreaches were interesting for sure. When we were giving out free backpack/school kits, we'd get lots of people in expensive vehicles with a carload of kids, each one getting a pack. I don't mean that in judgment, it's just that even the workers at the outreach were... a bit curious about, say, the Lexus SUV that came through and loaded up on freebies.
Now maybe it was wealthy neighbors bringing less fortunate people's kids through, we didn't know. And I'm certainly not saying that someone with a more expensive ride can't be in need.
But it's always curious to see who becomes the needy, or classifies themselves as needing, when things are given out for free.
And the majority of people showing up, especially the non-members it was attracting, were there to get, not give.
The main objective became feeding their kids/families for free.
And the outreaches were interesting for sure. When we were giving out free backpack/school kits, we'd get lots of people in expensive vehicles with a carload of kids, each one getting a pack. I don't mean that in judgment, it's just that even the workers at the outreach were... a bit curious about, say, the Lexus SUV that came through and loaded up on freebies.
Now maybe it was wealthy neighbors bringing less fortunate people's kids through, we didn't know. And I'm certainly not saying that someone with a more expensive ride can't be in need.
But it's always curious to see who becomes the needy, or classifies themselves as needing, when things are given out for free.
Been there.
For a few years our church participated in a "Feed America First" program where we would get random food from some organization, divide it among the boxes for the people who had signed up and wait for them to pick up their boxes. Sometimes you catch yourself wanting to ask someone, "Are you SURE you need this? 'Cause, forget about what you wear on Sunday morning (we all wear our best then) I know what you wear to church Wednesday NIGHT." I never did ask someone that, but I came close.
On the other side there are people you are sure need this more, but they never think to sign up for it because they don't know they are poor. If you mention the possibility of signing up for it they are surprised you would ask them. And I don't mean the people who are too proud to accept help - I mean people who never even considered it because they are happy with their lives and not looking for anything they can grab.
For a few years our church participated in a "Feed America First" program where we would get random food from some organization, divide it among the boxes for the people who had signed up and wait for them to pick up their boxes. Sometimes you catch yourself wanting to ask someone, "Are you SURE you need this? 'Cause, forget about what you wear on Sunday morning (we all wear our best then) I know what you wear to church Wednesday NIGHT." I never did ask someone that, but I came close.
On the other side there are people you are sure need this more, but they never think to sign up for it because they don't know they are poor. If you mention the possibility of signing up for it they are surprised you would ask them. And I don't mean the people who are too proud to accept help - I mean people who never even considered it because they are happy with their lives and not looking for anything they can grab.