When I was working as a Youth Minister, I became aware of this small movement called Souper Bowl of Caring. This consisted of one weekend in January, teens would stand by the doors with big soup pots and ask people to drop in some change as they left the service. It was a pretty simple idea that over time grew into this incredible organization. It began with one person’s idea to take a little play on words to feed millions.

I think the first few years I participated by having the teens sign up for each of the services. I loved promoting people to bring their change because when they threw it in the soup pot, it made a clank. It reminded me of the hunger pains people who are homeless or have limited funding for food must feel. Over these years we’d raise about $500 which we’d donate to a local food shelter called Holy Family House. This was a place where people were provided daily meals and during the year, I’d coordinate groups to go and serve dinner there.

As the Souper Bowl of caring grew, they began to share ideas about doing service projects leading up to the event. It was called a “service blitz”, again playing off of the language of football, I’d connect people, not just teens anymore but the entire church, to volunteer activities. It was an exciting event because we’d do this big push for people to give their time at soup kitchens, homeless shelters and food banks. We also continued to have the big soup pots to collect donations as well as asked people to provide some specific items to donate to other local service agencies. It was amazing!

What was probably my most favorite part was that it brought our church community together to do service. It wasn’t just the teens anymore earning service hours, but everyone, young and old doing what they could by giving either time or other resources. Additionally, it was a BIG push for donations right after Christmas when most organizations have been bleed dry of their resources. This event was the perfect time of year to get them stocked up so they could keep up with the needs of the community.

When I left my position as a Youth Minister, I continued to participate in the Souper Bowl of Caring on a personal level with my family. We have volunteered at a food bank and have made donations to service agencies as a continued commitment to make a difference in our community. I learned this year, that even the church where I worked and introduced the Souper Bowl of Caring, they are still participating in some form to recruit volunteers to go work in the community.

It’s been a bit of a tradition that we volunteer on Souper Bowl Sunday at Harvesters. It is near and dear to me because one of the founding members, Father Pat Tobin once gave me and some of my fellow youth workers a personal tour of one of the old facilities. Things seems to have more meaning when you have a personal connection. It is also a very special day because, though Harvesters hosts thousands of volunteers every year, they only open up Saturday and Sunday hours to participate in the Souper Bowl of Caring’s Service Blitz!

This year was extra special because the Kansas City Chiefs and the San Francisco Forty-Niners were playing in the SuperBowl. We got decked out in our football gear for the occasion! A great tradition and wonderful memories made that started with one guy who had the idea to collect some change to make a positive change in the lives of others! (Matthew 25:35 - "for I was hungry and you gave me food.”)