Milano Central Kitchen served 450 meals to the hungry this week.

The first day of Milano Central Kitchen was a day of triumph. We fed over 180 people a nutritious lunch and made many friends. We cannot thank you enough for your hard work, donations and caring kindness.

Some things we learned Tuesday. First, don't panic if there's not a line out the door! People came slowly, but they came, and they were hungry. The word got out over time thanks to your help and follow up among different organizations and contacts.

On Wednesday, we waited until 12:30 to distribute meals to other groups and organizations, just to be sure we have enough to feed those coming to our door.

We ran out early Wednesday because there are seriously hungry needy people in our hometown. My heart broke turning away the needy, but Jack Barakat the owner of Milano II literally had cooked everything he had in the place.

If youhave voluntered and aren't on the schedule yet, don't worry. We will be rotating volunteers and will put out a schedule for next Tuesday and Wednesday by the end of this week. We may end up doing two shifts each day, so that no one gets worn out, and we all stay cheerful.

Volunteers are all aware and follow the COVID-19 Safety Rules from World Central Kitchen. We ask volunteers to bring their own masks and check your temperature at the start of work.

Milanos 4-14-2020_ Rotary from Barker Christol on Vimeo.