By: Emily Grant, Director of Operations
Julio Cayo, Director of Food and Service (pictured left) has 27 years of experience and enjoys teaching and coaching.
Alexis Allen, Assistant Manager (pictured right) has 9 years in the food industry and loves her job because it allows her to express her love of food and ministry in one place.
Orlando Union Rescue Mission: Our mission is Hope. Shelters offer Relief.
As one of Central Florida’s oldest and largest homeless services providers, the Orlando Union Rescue Mission remains committed to helping the hungry, hurting, and homeless by providing programs and services designed to transform lives. Through short-term provision of basic needs, Christ-centered care, discipleship, and education, we aim to lead the homeless to permanent independence built upon a personal relationship with Christ.
In Julio’s words: We help the homeless, the hungry and the hurting. Our organization is Christian-based and that is why we help people. We don’t discriminate against anyone – we help everyone. We serve on average between 200-400 meals a day to our men’s shelter and our family shelter.
1. We're curious - how has the food from our program been helping you feed your community? Any pleasant surprises along the way?
Julio: The times that I have seen the food delivered – all breakfast items were perfect for us. We don’t serve a hot breakfast every day, so this was a great addition to add to our meals. And your drivers are great people! Byron is amazing.
Alexis: In the morning, we don’t have trained cooks and chefs, so the donated hot food from the Four Seasons Hotel makes it really easy for our staff. This is an added bonus to our usual continental breakfast.
2. What donated goodies seem to bring the biggest smiles to people's faces? Any unexpected favorites?
Alexis: The fresh fruit!
Julio: Agreed. Fruit is very expensive – we can offer grits and sausage, but we don’t always have fruit and the kids love it.
3. If you could wave a magic wand and get more of one type of donation, what would it be? What would make the biggest difference for your folks?
Alexis: I would say milk and cereal – having that as a consistent supply is needed. We especially need it for the children because they love cereal.
Julio: I agree. These kids really love cereal. (Laughs)
4. Mind sharing a heartwarming moment you've witnessed thanks to these donations? We love hearing the real stories behind the meals!
Julio: Let me tell you something. We are not perfect. The people that come here have their own problems, but we try to accommodate them as best we can. Sometimes people are shy and they don’t want to express themselves [to let us know if they like the food or not], but I would say 70-80% of folks are really thankful for the meal – we can’t make everyone happy, but they seem happy with what we serve [most of the time].
Alexis: Our normal breakfast is a continental meal with milk and cereal. So when families come in and we have a hot meal, they are excited. We are definitely blessed when we can offer a hot meal and not just the usual cereal and continental breakfast.
Anything else you would like to share?
Julio: We need organizations like you all to help us to feed people. We do not receive any funding from the government, so the donations over the last couple of years make a difference. We really love your organization – we maximized all the donations. Keep us in mind for the future.
Interested in sharing your partnership story or being featured by FoodRecovery.org? Reach out at hello@foodrecovery.org!