It’s an early Saturday morning in Garland, Texas. At the First Presbyterian Church, members of the congregation and community are coming together for what has become a weekly tradition for more than 10 years.
“I may not be able to get you clothes. I might not be able to get you a pair of shoes,” Annette Guerra-Renaud said, “but I can get you food on Saturday from 8 to 10 and a safe place to stay for a couple of hours.”
Guerra-Renaud is a ruling elder at First Presbyterian in Garland. Twelve years ago, she and a few other members of the congregation set out to give back and bring people together. After brainstorming a couple ideas, they finally settled on a community breakfast.
“There was like five or six families. We all decided, let’s share a meal with people,” Guerra-Renaud said. “We had a Saturday breakfast. We had seven people walk into the fellowship center at our church and we told everybody, come back next Saturday, we'll be here again.”
Fast forward 12 years later, the community breakfasts have fed more than 75,000 people and has become a staple, not only for the church, but also for those who attend the breakfast every weekend.
“They welcome anyone that comes,” Yvonne, who preferred to go by her first name, said. “Even if you don’t go to this church, you see that they have many kinds of people that come here. “
Yvonne is one of many regulars who attends the community breakfast. After attending for the first time in 2022, she discovered that while it was the free food that brought her there, the warmth and care from others is what kept her coming back.
“It's definitely a nice way to meet new people and make friends,” Yvonne said. “You know, I didn't know any of these people when I started coming here, and now I know a lot of people and we became close.”
Not only do the community breakfasts serve as a place for people to eat and find fellowship, they also serve as a way to give back for the people who organize them.
“I needed an outlet to give,” Kimberly Whalen said. "The people are here because they don't have food at home. So that’s why I give whatever I can.”
Whalen, lives across the street from First Presbyterian Church and after taking care of her father for years and then losing him to COVID-19, she found herself searching for a way to give.
“So, after my father passed away, I needed an outlet,” Whalen said. “And I thought, what can I do? I love to make muffins. And so, I started making 15 a week, and it took off so now I make about 80 muffins a week.”
Whalen become known as the "Muffin Lady" at the breakfast. She said even though it can be hard work at times, she enjoys the love and gratitude she gets from those who attend the breakfast, wherever she goes.
“There was one lady a year and a half ago, she recognized me at the grocery store,” Whalen said. “And she hugged me and started saying, ‘Thank you.’ I love being the Muffin Lady.”
The support from the church and the community has helped make the breakfast a success over the years, whether through donations or volunteering, the time and efforts are greatly appreciated.
“We open the doors at 8 every morning and they pour in,” Damon Renaud said. “They're standing outside waiting.”
Renaud, breakfast coordinator and Guerra-Renaud’s husband, has enjoyed seeing the number of families who stop by over the years.
“We have families come in and they'll be a grandma and a mom, and three kids,” Renaud said. “That’s what makes it for me. It's just wonderful.”
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