By Andrew Martins
Staff Writer
JACKSON – One woman’s effort to bring hope to struggling families in Jackson will come to fruition with the opening of the Bread from Heaven Cafe at 10:30 a.m. May 20 at the Knights of Columbus, 401 Bartley Road, Jackson.
The new soup kitchen and food pantry is the brainchild of resident Helen Ludowig, who has been preparing for its opening since October.
“We want people to come in and have a hot meal and before they leave, we want to give them groceries for two or three days,” Ludowig said. “We want to help out as much as we can.”
Although Jackson already has a food pantry which is run by the Jackson Women of Today, Ludowig said she also wanted to give something back to the community by helping what she said is a growing number of families who are struggling to put food on the table each week.
“If we have two (food pantries), we can help even more people,” she said.
Ludowig said the inspiration for the Bread from Heaven Cafe came from her own struggles at a young age.
“When I was a kid, my mother died and my father left while my sisters and I were young, so before we were picked up by social workers and taken to an orphanage, we were living on the street,” she said.
Ludowig said her time outside the orphanage system shaped her desire to help others. She eventually worked in hospitals. Over the years, she said, she wanted to start a soup kitchen, but she did not have a chance to do so until she was laid off from her job at a hospital in Monmouth County.
“God made the choice for me. My job was eliminated and after that I thought there was something else I was supposed to do,” Ludowig said. “Ever since I started this, He has brought the right people to help me with this. I want to eventually help people find work so they can build up their self-esteem and help benefit the community.”
For information about how to get involved, contact Ludowig at 732-245-5954 or spiffy41@yahoo.com.
