Central Lutheran Church
Community Lunch on Capitol Hill
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON

“I have obsessive-compulsive disorder, bi-polar and social phobias,” said Brenda Michael. “These illnesses caused my life-changing journey and my blessing with homelessness on June 7, 2002.”

The homeless community welcomed Brenda as one of their own. “I did not understand how they took care of their own until I was out there and became part of the family,” she said. “They brought me to Central Lutheran Church for lunch on Monday, Tuesday, and Friday.”

At Central Lutheran Church in Seattle, I met Amy, who serves as coordinator for the church-led Community Lunch on Capitol Hill. “We became friends,” said Michael. In the months that followed, she learned more about the lunch program and the church.

Community Lunch on Capitol Hill is driven by its 20-year-long tradition of and commitment to street ministry rooted in the Lutheran tradition. In those 20 years, the lunch program has grown from serving one meal per week to two meals per week. Attendance jumped from 40 guests per meal to an average of 180 guests per meal. Today, more than 400 volunteers faithfully help serve meals each year. Every week about 360 homeless people and others who earn a low income in the Capitol Hill and Seattle area are blessed with a free meal and respite from their difficult lives.

Brenda is now a member of Central Lutheran, she serves on the Board of Directors for Community Lunch on Capital Hill, and she lectures about homelessness.