BY BRIAN J. LOWNEY, Assistant Editor
PROVIDENCE — The fragrant aroma of homemade spaghetti and meatballs filled the night on March 7 as dozens of homeless men and women waited patiently in a driving rain at two downtown Providence sites for a small band of volunteers from Breadlines to begin serving a hot meal.
Some guests took their food inside into nearby shelters,
For many of them, who crowd local shelters at night or sleep on the street, being acknowledged with respect is just as important as receiving a nutritious meal.
“We have become friends with many of these people,” said Anne Pari, a member of St. Brendan Parish, Riverside and one of the founders of Breadlines. “They tell us stories that really are heartbreaking.”
Breadlines was founded in October, 2006 by Pari, together with Steve Perry, a communicant at St. Luke Church, Barrington; and John Dawson, a member of St. Jude Church, Lincoln. The trio distributes food, personal care items and clothing every other Friday night in Providence and at Harrington Hall in Cranston. The founders are assisted by friends, co-workers and other volunteers whom they have met when speaking at parishes to encourage support of their ministry.
“There are no bosses in this group,” Pari added. “We all care about the homeless.”
Breadlines receives cold and hot food from many contributors, including St. Philip School and St. Philip’s Women’s Guild, Greenville; Holy Angel’s Women’s Guild, Barrington; St. Brendan School, Riverside, La Salle Academy, Providence and Sacred Heart Parish, Pawtucket. Pari said Breadlines has many open slots during the summer and fall to fill, and is seeking local groups to prepare sandwiches or a hot meal that can easily be distributed to a large number of people. The volunteers feed more than 150 people at the three sites.
Joseph Renzulli, principal of St. Brendan School, said he became a volunteer with Breadlines after the school cook and several students prepared food for the urban ministry group last fall. The school received a $10,000 grant from the Feinstein Foundation to help purchase food and personal care items for the homeless.
“Once you get out and get a nice warm feeling from helping people, you get hooked,” said the popular educator, whose wife Adele has also joined the group.
“Everyone who comes with us wants to come back,” Pari emphasized.
“God bless you” and “thank you” rang through the air as grateful recipients lined up for a hot supper and a few words of encouragement at the Johnson & Wales Circle off Weybosset Street and at Crossroads on Broad Street. The Breadlines volunteers cheerfully offered hot drinks, bottled water, canned soda, spaghetti and meatballs, and homemade brownies for dessert. Guests were also given plastic bags filled with sandwiches, potato chips, crackers, fruit and other snacks.
Carl Neitzel, a resident of Beneficent House, Providence, and a member of the board of directors of the Rhode Island Coalition for the Homeless for five years, said that he has been homeless twice in life and lived on the street for more than six months each time. Neitzel was homeless in 1994 and again in 2001, shortly after the terrorist attacks on Sept. 11.
“I made a very good living and it all ended in the 90’s,” he acknowledged, noting that he graduated from Fordham Preparatory School in New York City and Holy Cross College and had enjoyed a 30 year-business career in human resources, labor relations and retail management.
“I lost everything. I was put on the street at a time when I needed two hips replaced,” said Neitzel, who walks with the use of two canes.
“I think that these people are wonderful,” he said, laughing. “Whoever made the brownies already has a place in heaven.”
Neitzel explained that Breadlines “takes the heat off some of the soup kitchens.
“Some people spend 50 percent of the day traveling to places to eat,” he said, adding that the time would be better spent trying to find a job or improve their living Homeless
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situation.
“Anybody can be homeless,” Neitzel said. “It’s not the end of the world. You learn more about yourself — that you can survive. It changes your values system. Certain things become more important. You take pleasure from a cup of macaroni and meatballs.”
While most of Breadlines’ guests were interested in a filling meal, others eagerly sought new socks and toiletries. Despite a sudden downpour, some guests “shopped” at Crossroads, carefully looking for the proper size in an assortment of shirts and jackets that were hung on a chain link fence.
“Socks, brother, you got socks!” shouted one man, as he gratefully thanked a volunteer for a new pair of white athletic footwear. Another man, searching for outerwear, told the volunteers that he was cold and was given a bright blue woolen blanket that he used as protection from the rain.
“Oh my God, I am so grateful,” he said joyfully. “I don’t have a coat. Now at least I have a blanket.”
The Breadlines volunteers then moved on to Harrington Hall in Cranston, a shelter for homeless men operated by the Urban League under contract with the state. While many men ate spaghetti or enjoyed a slice of cake, others jumped from their cots when they learned that the Breadlines volunteers were also distributing toiletries and socks.
“The lights go out at 9 p.m.,” said Nate Cardoso, an intake worker at the men’s shelter. “Everyone just sleeps peacefully.”
Breadlines will next be serving meals on Good Friday and every other Friday night thereafter. The group meets at St. Patrick School’s parking lot, 244 Smith St., at 5:45 p.m. Volunteers are needed, as are donations of personal care items, and men’s and women’s spring jackets and socks. For more information, call Anne Pari at 437-1557.
