It’s been 10 years. 10 years since a group of friends came together in central London with a few sandwiches to distribute to the homeless and vulnerable in Holborn.
What they could not have imagined back then was that their small gesture would end up becoming an organisation that feeds hundreds of people a month.
Children of Adam has served over 80,000 meals since inception. At first it was just sandwiches which were handmade at the point of distribution, now it’s restaurant made meals which are warm and wholesome, shop provided sandwiches/pizzas, fruit and salad, bread, soup, dessert, water and crisps. Not forgetting the clothes, sleeping bags, toiletries and other essentials we distribute throughout the year.
Our guests rely on us not just for the warm food we provide, but as an outdoor service that is always there, no questions asked, no matter the weather, the time of year (yes we’ve been there even on Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve), or what’s happening in the lives of our volunteers.
We’ve seen guests come and go, some moving out of London to start again elsewhere and others because they’ve been allocated housing. We’ve had to say goodbye to others who have found jobs or enrolled at university.
It’s bitter sweet, but we all know we are here as a stop gap, for as long as the guests need us.
The saddest part is when people simply don’t come back and we are left wondering where they are. Over ten years of service, many guests become our friends, we rely on seeing their friendly smiles as much as they look forward to enjoying our quality food.
Then there are the guests who return and volunteer with us, and donate to our distribution because they value the service they received when they needed it most.
We have, unfortunately, lost a number of guests along the way. But we hope that at least for the time that they came to Lincoln’s Inn Field’s on a Sunday, they felt welcomed, accepted, cared and provided for.
With the help of Vegware and all the other companies and charities that support our vital work we hope to be able to keep our service going for the decades to come or however long our guests need us.
