In recent months, St Egidio's soup kitchen in Munich's central Schwabing district has become a reference point for the city' s homeless. Whereas several other organisations, shops and public services were closed, the soup kitchen widened its doors - over 600 hot take-away meals have been distributed each weekend.
20,000 meals were provided in pandemic time. To celebrate the event, a bouquet of flowers and a congratulatory card were offered to Ernst S, an elderly man who has been coming to the soup kitchen for years, as he received the 20,000th meal.
Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 crisis, the number of people attending the soup kitchen has increased. The food financed by donations is now also served on Sundays instead of only on Saturdays.
Ursula Kalb, responsible of the Community in Munich, says that many are the 'new' poor, especially people in precarious jobs who have become unemployed during the pandemic and lost their homes. There are also many elderly people. No one is forgotten, contact is maintained with everyone. The number of people in need has multiplied, just as the number of volunteers of all ages. Many of them are people from the neighbourhood, who were struck by the queue at the door of the soupkitchen. They realised the number of people in need was growing and offered to join the Community's effort.
