Homelessness Ministries
Get Involved in the Hands-On Ministries At Market Square!
As a downtown city church, we have a unique opportunity to help our neighbors who are homeless. Caring for our neighbors through shared meals is a vital part of life at Market Square, and we invite you to consider joining one of our weekend food ministries. Whether you enjoy cooking, serving, or offering a warm welcome, there are many ways to participate.
Friday To-Go Dinner
Coordinator: Ray Davis (rjd17110@gmail.com)
The Friday Dinner ministry involves cooking, plating, and serving approximately 100 meals, which are distributed in to-go containers in front of the church. Volunteers work in two shifts: 3:00–5:30 p.m. and 5:15–7:00/7:30 p.m. (until cleanup is complete).
Examples of What We Serve: Spaghetti and meatballs with bread and a garden salad; mushroom-onion-barbecue cheeseburgers with tater tots; chicken-broccoli-mushroom alfredo rotini, barbecue chicken with macaroni and cheese and green beans, Chicken fajitas with onions and peppers, served with salsa and sour cream and scallion rice, three-egg omelets over scallion-rice and cheesy-garlicy black beans. Each meal is served with a cold bottle of water. On a typical Friday evening we serve between 100 and 125 hot meals to anyone who self-identifies as needing one.
Saturday Food Pantry
Every Saturday morning from 9:00 am until 11:00 am, Market Square Presbyterian Church operates a food pantry in Fellowship Hall. No ID is required to sign in. Attendees receive milk and eggs most weeks, as well as an assortment of dry and canned goods acquired from the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank via our partner in this program, the International Service Center (ISC).
Coordinator: Steph Kerns (skerns@cdschools.org)
The Saturday Food Pantry welcomes approximately 30–50 guests each week. Volunteers provide coffee and cereal and make available food received from the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. Volunteers arrive at 8:30 a.m., and the pantry is open to guests from 9:00–10:30 a.m.
The ISC runs an afternoon food pantry on Friday afternoons in the same space. Taken together, we provide up to 100 needy individuals per week with food they can prepare at home. Additionally, on Saturday mornings we provide coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and cold cereal with milk, so that our attendees can eat something on the spot in addition to getting food for the week.
Sunday Breakfast
Market Square Presbyterian Church's longest-standing ministry for unhoused and impoverished individuals is our Sunday sit-down hot breakfast, served in Fellowship Hall from 8:00 am-9:00 am. Our typical menu includes pancakes or French toast, scrambled eggs, sausage links, and sometimes hash browns. Coffee, tea, and cold cereal are also available, as is fresh fruit and fruit juice. we typically have between 100 and 150 guests each Sunday morning. The breakfasts are prepared by a rotation of volunteers from other local churches - they arrive early and begin cooking.
Sunday Breakfast Providers
Coordinator: Janet Bargh (janet.bargh@comcast.net )
Volunteer providers come from ours and other faith communities and community groups. Each commits to serve between 150-200 hot breakfasts once a month, or in some cases on the fifth Sundays throughout the year. Providers arrive between 7:00 and 7:30 a.m. to prepare the meal, which is then served restaurant-style at 8:00 by volunteer servers. They are provided with eggs, milk, fruit and juice. Any additional supplies, such as sausage links, bread for French toast, or tater tots, are brought by the breakfast providers. They clean the cooking supplies and the kitchen once the cooking is complete.
Sunday Breakfast Servers
Coordinator: Jim Terry (jaterry5605@gmail.com)
Meal preparation and cooking are provided by partner churches; our volunteers focus on serving and hospitality. Volunteers arrive by 7:30 a.m., and the ministry wraps up around 9:30 a.m.
Volunteer Scheduling & Logistics
Volunteer schedules for each ministry are prepared monthly, and volunteers are typically scheduled once per month. Prospective volunteers are welcome to observe any of these ministries before making a commitment.
