Cathedral Kitchen’s mission is to help people out of food insecurity and champion their pursuit of stability and prosperity.
In April 1976, sparked by the words and spirit of Mother Teresa, four young Camden residents began helping people experiencing poverty and food insecurity by serving soup and sandwiches out of the back door of a church.
Throughout the 1980’s, a dedicated community of volunteers continued to build this humble operation, eventually hiring a cooking staff in the early 1990’s. By its 25th anniversary, in 2001, Cathedral Kitchen was serving 7,000 meals annually, and grew quickly to 100,000 meals annually by 2008.
Today, Cathedral Kitchen is a highly organized service center and the largest emergency meal provider in South Jersey. We mitigate the harms of poverty and food insecurity through a robust Meal and Outreach program that serves thousands of Camden residents annually, a comprehensive Social Services program that connects guest to critical supports, a Culinary Arts Training program that readies economically marginalized individuals for sustained employment in living wage jobs, and a social enterprise program that provides jobs to Camden residents.
