Talladega’s Red Door Kitchen delivers community care by the cooler-full – Yellowhammer News

The white lid closes gently and tightly on a cardinal red cool box before lifting it from the long table it shares with identical cool boxes, going through a red door and lifting it into the bed of a dark gray pickup truck. It’ll bounce around a bit as it drives the streets of Talladega, and the next time it opens it will produce two treasures: a warm, nutritious meal and the promise of an equally warm visit to a friend.

It’s not just any colorful cooler; It’s a Red Door Kitchen Cooler, an essential tool in this nonprofit’s mission to feed the hungry, a mission it has been serving since 1985. That year, heads of some District Churches opened the “red door” at the organization’s first location and invited everyone to come in and get a bowl of soup and a sandwich, free of charge and without questions.

In 1995, Red Door Kitchen (RDK) expanded its services to create a “Meals on Wheels” service to serve hungry home residents in the community. Today around 50 loyal volunteer drivers come every weekday morning, each grabbing one of the red cool boxes and setting off on their routes to provide around 80 people, including many older people, with lunch dishes and a few minutes of community. Both gifts are valuable to those receiving the meals, said Pat Miller, who has volunteered at RDK for years.

“They need the food, but what we also give them is the opportunity to talk to someone, interact and share news,” she said. “Sometimes these people just don’t see a lot of other people and I know they get lonely.”

Miller knows that isolation and hunger are harmful, and that she and other RDK volunteers provide relief in both cases. Therefore, she has a noticeable leap in her step when she and her husband Frank walk out the characteristic red door of the organization and look after “their people”.

The Red Door Kitchen delivers hot meals and hot visits from the Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

Open the door wide

It is the second location the organization moved to in 1996 that really opened the door to serving more people in the community. Once a grill restaurant, the building’s commercial kitchen and food storage rooms enabled RDK to offer more than just soup and sandwiches. Over the years the organization has improved its structure, and recent grants have paved the way for RDK to expand its reach.

Billy Sparkman, president of the RDK board of directors, said that was the whole point. “We’re here because there is a need – and the need is growing – and everyone on the RDK team knows we have to try to meet it,” he said. “For that… we need resources; we need our wonderful volunteers. “

Back in the red door, even when the last cooler is gone, a tempting mix of flavors from the menu of the day – smoky ham, slowly simmered vegetables and sweet potatoes – still smells of the empty dining room.

Before the pandemic, some people would have come in to enjoy a plate of chef Shonee Smith’s comfort food classics. She joined the RDK team in 2018 shortly after retiring from the nearby Honda auto plant.

“This is a good place and a good service,” she said. “It has been a blessing for me to be here and do this. I’ve seen people in their worst situations. I’ve seen people in their best situations. “

But even before COVID-19 closed the dining room, meal delivery was a priority for RDK.

“When we started deliveries, we were dispensing nearly 16,000 meals,” said Sparkman. “Last year that number rose to 20,851. The program has really evolved. “

RDK finds the people it helps through another local organization, First Family Services. The majority are elderly, but not all are in financial difficulty; anyone who is unable to prepare a meal or who cannot get their own can put themselves on the delivery list.

A day of the red door

Every day starts the same: Smith and her husband Johnny come for pumpkin, pinto beans, cream corn and more from 5:30 am to 6:00 am.

The Smiths are RDK’s only permanent staff; As soon as they finish cooking, the volunteer brigade takes over. On a typical day, a group of retired women shows up to help the Smiths move food from pots and pans into take-away boxes. Another volunteer, the route director, displays the cool boxes and then other volunteers fill them up with meals. Drivers sign up for the next hour or so to pick up coolers for those on their delivery list. And the next morning everything starts again early.

The simple, straightforward process belies the scope and importance of the impact of TPMS. “The drivers can be the only person they see or talk to the returnees all day,” said Sparkman. Conversation and smiles are key elements of the RDK service. But sometimes the drivers encounter serious threats. When an elderly lady dropped a cup and cut herself badly, it was her RDK delivery driver who provided first aid and also provided her with medical care.

In another case, a driver saved a life. “A volunteer couple knocked on a door and there was no answer, but they could hear the man’s little dog barking properly,” Sparkman recalled. “They made the manager open his seat and found him unconscious on the floor. They could get an ambulance there. “

Drivers get to know the meal recipients on their routes and may notice mental deterioration or other health problems. “They become advocates for these people, and some of them have no one for that,” said Shonee Smith.

COVID-19 was an obvious risk to the people on the delivery list and many of the volunteers over the age of 65, so RDK took precautions such as having drivers put meals on the door, knock and withdraw. With the masks on, some volunteers and those they serve were still comfortable with some socially distant social time. But others didn’t, especially in the beginning. Sparkman is excited to announce that camaraderie is returning as COVID-19 news continues to improve.

Support cycle

Sparkman praised the strong and consistent support the organization receives from the community. “The city of Talladega supports us. We get so many food donations from churches, groups, schools and even the post office here that is doing food drives, ”he said. “We recently had a company deliver 1,000 pounds of groceries. There are so many different people who help us to help others. “

Support is important, but RDK volunteers are “built in,” Sparkman said. Most seem to get as much as they give.

“I am delighted to see the people we serve,” said Miller. “We get to know them and they are all so sweet and grateful. I am really happy to see her every week. “

Some RDK volunteers also benefit. The Burton Center, a local mental retardation clinic, brings customers four days a week to help with food delivery. Taking the route helps customers learn directions, memorize numbers and names, and improve their manners. “It’s a great activity and an outlet for our patients,” said D’ante Wright, who works with the center. “It is also really rewarding for them to help someone else.”

In an ever-growing circle of connectedness and compassion, RDK offers more than just physical support.

“Relationships are what really matter,” said Shonee Smith. “Our volunteers are great at this. Take the time to talk and listen to help with things that we may find insignificant, such as: B. get something from a top shelf or under a bed. They treat the people we care for like family and that can change those people’s lives dramatically. “

This story is part of a series about nonprofits supported by the Alabama Power Foundation, based on the Foundation’s 2020 Annual Report, “At the Point of Change.” Read a story about The King’s Canvas.

(Courtesy Alabama NewsCenter)