Christ Kitchen relocate to North Monroe former Taco Time

With a grant from the Presbyterian Women USA for a commercial kitchen, Christ Kitchen and Christ Clinic bought a former Taco Time at 2410 N. Monroe.

Christ Kitchen, which started in 1998, is holding open houses from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., with a light lunch, and from 4 to 8 p.m., with hors d’oeuvres on Friday, Nov. 3, and from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday, Nov. 5.

The ministries have been housed at Westminster Presbyterian Church.  Christ Clinic, which started in 1991, will stay at the church until enough funds are raised to build a new clinic.

The commercial kitchen makes it possible to employ more women more often and enable them to make a wage they can live on, said director Jan Martinez.  At first, women worked one day a week.  Now they work three days a week for this business and ministry.

“Eventually, we hope to support Christ Clinic with increased profits, helping them expand medical services to more uninsured patients,” Jan said.

Christ Kitchen, a nonprofit Christian ministry providing work, job training and fellowship for women in poverty, plans a capital campaign, too.

In addition to selling products—dried food products such as bean soups, cookie mixes, cocoa, brownie mixes, teas and corn bread mixes—on site, the program will develop hot take-out meals, box lunches and catered meals for business, church and nonprofit meetings.

Christ Kitchen is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturdays. The program helps women gain employment skills for so they can support themselves without government programs or destructive relationships, Jan said.

For information, call 325-4343 or email janbow@msn.com.

By Mary Stamp, The Fig Tree - © November 2006