THE COMMUNITY LUNCH PROGRAM
WEDNESDAY LUNCH – SAUSALITO
CHRIST EPISCOPAL, SAUSALITO PRESBYTERIAN & STAR OF THE SEA
AS TOLD TO JULIE CARLSON BY MIKE BROMHAM, SUSAN DANILOFF AND ROBIN SWEENY
OCTOBER 19, 2014
When Robin Sweeny was on the Sausalito City Council she sought to address issues of
homelessness in Sausalito. She wanted to provide an overnight shelter, but unable to
accomplish that task, Robin found one of the things she could do was help feed the
town’s hungry.
Robin obtained the first van for this program. It was donated by the Marin County
Sheriff’s office, and when it was beyond repair, the Sausalito Recreation Department
donated the van that is still used today. When not in use, the van is parked at the Sausalito
Corporation Yard.
Transportation is provided to participating churches in Mill Valley on Tuesday, Sausalito
on Wednesday, Tiburon on Thursday, and to the St Vincent’s dining room in San Rafael
on Sundays. On Mondays, there was an ecumenical Food Panty funded by food
donations and contributions Robin Sweeny continued to raise, but the program was
recently dissolved and people were referred to the Food Bank in Marin City.
A separate program, Open Door, still serves a Friday dinner at Sausalito Christian
Fellowship (formerly Sausalito Baptist Church).
In 2011, when Robin Sweeny was 85 years old, she turned the Hot Meal Coalition over to
Susan Daniloff. A large part of Robin’s role had been to manage the costs of the lunch
program’s van and the driver’s payroll. Susan thought this could better be funded through
The Society of St Vincent de Paul, so she applied to Mike Bromham, who was the current
President of St Vincent’s Board of Directors, asking St Vincent’s to take over the
transportation costs. (St Vincent’s is an ecumenical non-profit founded in Paris in the
1830s to help the poor.)
The request was approved and the Southern Marin Hot Meal Coalition was folded into St
Vincent’s. The program is now commonly called ‘Community Lunch.’
St Vincent’s has budgeted about $12,000 annually to pay for the van, its gas,
maintenance and insurance and for the driver’s salary.
When Mike Bromham finished a six-year term as President of the Board of Directors,
Susan Daniloff succeeded him for 3 years. The current president is Rich Gallagher and
Mark Cotter is the current Business Manager. The current Executive Director, Christine
Paquette, is responsible for the van and driver; otherwise, the Community Lunch program
runs on its own volunteer force made up of participating churches.
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WEDNESDAY COMMUNITY LUNCH
CHRIST EPISCOPAL, SAUSALITO PRESBYTERIAN & STAR OF THE SEA
The first Wednesday Lunch was served on October 15, 1995, at the Sausalito
Presbyterian Church (SPC). Some of the founding members were Gloria Horne and
Suzanne Parsell of SPC, Helene Swanson and her late husband Bill of Christ Church and
Elizabeth Tremel, Star of the Sea.
The Churches trade responsibility for providing food in this order:
Christ Church: January, April, July, and October
Star of the Sea: February, May, August, and November
Sausalito Presbyterian: March, June, September, and December
The Wednesday Lunch feeds a core community of about 25-30 people each week – they
are the working poor, anchor outs, people with mental illness, the elderly; some live in
their cars or are homeless; and some are transient, but all are in need. Some help set-up
and some help clean up. All are grateful. Lunch begins with a prayer.
In the beginning, the three churches provided all the food in their assigned months and
parishioners stayed to serve the meals and talk with the guests. Elizabeth Tremel
remembers when the churches delivered, cooked and served all the food. Key individuals
at each church coordinated the food collection and participation. Overtime however,
church participation and contributions diminished.
Food: Volunteer Mike Bromham (Mill Valley resident) is the Good Samaritan of the
Wednesday Lunch Program. While Mike was part of the Tuesday Lunch program in Mill
Valley, he recognized the wednesday program in Sausalito was struggling and so he
began to assist. He applied to St Vincent’s for a hot meal and St Vincent’s now provides
one hot entree every Wednesday.
Transportation: Sausalito resident, James Tulley (an employee of The Society of St
Vincent) drives to St Vincent’s on Wednesday to pick up the SPC hot entree and then he
transports passengers to SPC from two pick-up locations, Gate Five Road and Dumphy
Park.
Today, this is how Wednesday lunches are being supplied:
 St Vincent’s contributes a hot entree for 30
 Mike buys ingredients for 30 to make: a hot soup, a hot vegetable dish, and a
carbohydrate of rice or potatoes. (Some staples are occasionally available from St
Vincent’s.)
 Other volunteers Mike recruited bring a protein.
 The churches are asked to supply (though this is not routinely provided):
 a healthy salad of greens for 30 with cut-up vegetables
 1 gallon of whole milk (an important protein)
 2 liters of juice
 fruit (if possible) something soft – bananas or citrus
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Mike, and volunteers he has recruited, begin cooking about 8 a.m.
Mike also buys the containers and utensils for the takeaway leftovers; plus cups
and bowls for soup and salad; also, the napkins, plates and other single-use
products as they are needed.
No requests have ever been made for reimbursement.
VOLUNTEERS WHO MAKE THIS PROGRAM WORK
From Star of the Sea
Elizabeth Tremel: is one of the original members of the Wednesday Lunch
Program. She still coordinates food donations from the Star of the Sea congregation and
helps, as needed, in the four months assigned to Star of the Sea. (Elizabeth was the Food
Panty Coordinator at Star of the Sea.)
Wayne (Wayno) Elkin: is available about half the year. Mike Bromham recruited
Wayno in 2013. Wayno brings a protein, spending about $30-$40. About the money
Wayno says: It’s not the buying, it’s the privilege to serve – I can’t help it, I am driven to
do it. Wayno works in the kitchen, serves meals and helps with the washing-up. (He cares
about compost and recycling; his daughter Jenna has a blog on Zero Waste.)
From Christ Church
Robin Halpern: coordinates contributions from the Christ Church congregation.
She begin in 2009 when Christ Church had big group of Wednesday Lunch volunteers.
Since then Robin has come every week to assist with the kitchen washing up.
From Sausalito Presbyterian
Diana Ferrone: here every Wednesday for kitchen help, serving, clean up and is
the point-of-contact when Sausalito Presbyterian Church assistance is needed.
Marti Cermak: coordinates food donations from the SPC congregation and helps
as needed, especially in the four months assigned to SPC, when servers from the
responsible congregation are especially helpful.
Michael Bromham’s Recruits
Michael Bromham: Mike, as mentioned, provides and coordinates preparation of
most of the food. When Mike arrives at 8 a.m., Kathleen, and sometimes another
woman, are often already here. Mike lets them in, and makes them coffee. They sit
quietly in a warm safe place. Mike says, Can you even imagine what it must be like to be
a woman with no place to live all night and all day? … We have assumptions about
people, but when you meet them, it is totally different from what you might have thought.
… I really do love this program, you can just feel the goodness of it.
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Vincent Costello: Vince, a Mill Valley resident, had been serving the Community
Lunch with Mike in Mill Valley since 2005. Four years ago, when Mike told him the
Wednesday program was struggling, Vincent switched to SPC. He arrives early to help
cook the protein and side dishes. Vince is a former New York restaurant owner (Capri
400) and says he just enjoys giving back to the community. Vice is available about 8
months of the year.
Joe Woods: A San Rafael resident and a friend of Vincent Costello. He worked
for Vince in his New York restaurant. When Joe is not working at his regular job he
comes by and also helps with the cooking and serving.
Ulla Kerr: From Peace Lutheran Church in Mill Valley, Ulla worked with Mike
at the Star of the Sea Food Panty, and came to the Wednesday Lunch Program about two
years ago when Mike needed help. Now she comes every Weds at about 11:30 to serve
food and help clean up. (Ulla is 82 and is active in her church and the Homeward Bound
program serving seniors and families.)
WAY FORWARD
The Wednesday Lunch now survives due to the generosity and care of Mike Bromham
who could be better supported. Mike is asking for very little but it does not appear there
is an effective channel to make requests known to the other churches.
Food – Churches are not consistently providing the food contributions and may
not even know what is needed.
Servers – Sometimes there are not enough servers. It was nicer when the church’s
volunteers stayed to serve, eat and talk with the lunch recipients. They are an interesting
group of people and the experience is rewarding.
Cost of Tableware – SPC Session recently voted to spend up to $100 (of $488) to
purchase single use tableware and take-out containers for the Community Lunch.
Wednesday Community Lunch Budget – SPC maintains a Wednesday
Community Lunch account that has not been used in some time. The balance of $488 is
left from one-time donations.
Reestablish a Wednesday Lunch Liaison Committee – Elizabeth Tremel said that
in the beginning, there were regular meetings with key individuals. It would be useful for
the three churches to reestablish key parishioners who could exchange contact
information and meet as needed to discuss and coordinate food, service and monetary
issues. These individuals have offered their liaison support and contact information:
Key Volunteer - Mike Bromham, 388-2592, mbromham@aol.com
SPC - Marti Cermak, 612-385-3348, mcermak@aol.com
Star of the Sea - Elizabeth Tremel, 328-1469, P.O. Box 2124, Sausalito, 94966
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Attachment: SOUTHERN MARIN HOT MEAL COALITION, Vincent de Paul Society Marin
County Council, By Susan Daniloff
SOUTHERN MARIN HOT MEAL COALITION
Vincent de Paul Society Marin County Council
By Susan Daniloff
The Southern Marin Hot Meal Coalition strives to serve the needs of low income
and homeless people in Southern Marin County. Its founding members were participants
in the now defunct Southern Marin Homeless Task Force appointed by the Marin County
Board of Supervisors. Members included civic leaders Robin Sweeny of Sausalito, John
Leonard of Mill Valley, Ron Ryland, and the task force's former co-chairman, Jack
Bartlett of Mill Valley, as well as various religious organizations in Southern Marin
County.
Host churches include Our Lady of Mount Carmel Roman Catholic Church and
Mt. Tamalpais Methodist Church of Mill Valley, Westminster Presbyterian Church of
Tiburon, the Presbyterian Church of Sausalito, and the St. Vincent de Paul Society of San
Rafael.
The first hot lunch was served at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in April of
1995. It was patterned after the weekly Friday dinner program at the Baptist Church in
Sausalito. With the generous support of a number of churches and St. Vincent de Paul,
we have been able to establish a hot lunch program four days a week. Meals are served
every Tuesday and every 4th Sunday in Mill Valley, in Sausalito on Wednesdays,
Tiburon on Thursdays, and at St. Vincent de Paul in San Rafael on Sundays other than
the 4th Sunday.
The program includes transportation to and from the meals by van, which is
managed in cooperation with the St. Vincent De Paul Society of San Rafael, who acts as
the coalition's fiscal agent. The 15-passenger van is driven by paid drivers, each of whom
must have a Class B California State Driver's License. Each lunch serves 25-40 men,
women and children. To date, the food, necessary supplies, and facilities have been
provided through the generosity of the five host churches and the following additional
churches and organizations: Community Church, Peace Lutheran Church, Church of Our
Savior, and Mt. Tamalpais Methodist Church, all of Mill Valley; Community
Congregational Church, St. Hilary's Roman Catholic Church, and Shepherd of the Hills
Lutheran Church of Tiburon; St. Stephen's Episcopal Church of Belvedere, and the St.
Vincent de Paul Society of Marin County in San Rafael.
It should be noted that our program is designed in cooperation with two
independent programs, the Open Door Ministry at the Sausalito Baptist Church which
serves a hot meal every Friday evening, and the Food Pantry Program* at Star of the Sea
Roman Catholic Church in Sausalito which distributes free bags of groceries every
Monday afternoon.
* Food Panty Program is no longer in operation.
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