Plates of love in Blairgowrie
BLAIRGOWRIE – One Small of Kindness shares why the need came about to have a weekly soup kitchen in the area.
A nightly serving of a wholesome meal made and served with love is what many families in our community get to enjoy.
For the displaced among us, this is a luxury they would otherwise not receive if it were not for charity groups like One Small Act of Kindness. Every Thursday evening the group, along with some eager volunteers, head to two locations, one in Blairgowrie and another in Fontainebleau to host a soup kitchen.
In a night, One Small of Kindness usually finds itself feeding about 200 people whom they have come to know and in some cases, help individually. As one can imagine, it is no easy feat to cater for this many people weekly but Kelly-Ann van der Meer, the brainchild behind the charity and organiser of the soup kitchen, is armed not only with a big pot to cook in but a big love for people too.
Van der Meer explained the soup kitchen started about a year ago through the small act of giving a displaced person a cup of coffee on a cold winter’s night. “Then one night, one of the guys asked if he could have some food.”
From that day on the soup kitchen grew bigger.
All of the food given out on that evening is donated and they aim to ensure that each serving is not only handed out with respect but that it is a meal that is wholesome and filling. Sticking with the theme of wholesomeness is their need to make sure their help goes beyond a full plate. The group gets to know each person they assist on a personal level and, in so doing, they find out what their skills and strengths are so they help get them employed.
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