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Coronavirus

*** Last updated: Monday, April 6, 2020 7:20 pm ET ***

Update concerning Capuchin Soup Kitchen sites

Posted Monday, April 6, 2020 7:20 pm ET

Capuchin Services Center site, 6333 Medbury

Starting on Tuesday, April 7, our new temporary adjusted hours for the Capuchin Services Center, 6333 Medbury, will be 8:30 am to 4:00 pm Tuesdays through Fridays. Those seeking food are asked to make an appointment by calling (313) 925-0514. We ask that in-kind donations, such as clothing, not be brought until further notice in order to cut down on travel and traffic. Our social workers will be available.

1264 Meldrum meal program site

Starting on Wednesday, April 8, our 1264 Meldrum meal program site will continue serving “to-go” meals outside with these new hours: 8:30 am - 9:30 am and from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm, Mondays through Fridays. Our client advocate will be available.

4390 Conner meal program site

Starting on Tuesday, April 7, our 4390 Conner meal program site will continue serving “to-go” meals outside from 11:00 am – 1:00 pm, Mondays through Saturdays. This food will be prepared and brought over from the Meldrum meal site.

Our Jefferson House residential treatment program for formerly homeless men continues to function as well as our On the Rise Bakery/R.O.P.E. (Reaching Our Potential Everyday) residential program for men who have recently been released from prison or have completed a substance abuse treatment program. Our bakery has switched from retail sales to producing exclusively for our soup kitchens. Our Rosa Parks Children’s Program has been temporarily suspended. Our Earthworks Urban Farm program remains functioning with only minimal staff to keep the seedlings propagated and healthy for future distributions to community growers, and for the soup kitchen food supply. At all of our sites, we are focusing on our most basic operations so that we can keep some of our staff at home but still be able to provide for social work services and basic food supply for those we serve. Each week brings new challenges so please be watchful for further announcements.

St. Bonaventure Chapel quarantine

 

Posted Sunday, April 5, 2020 8:00 pm ET

An individual working in ministry at St. Bonaventure Chapel has developed symptoms consistent with COVID-19. Effective immediately the Chapel is under quarantine and will remain closed to the public until further notice. Until the quarantine is lifted, confessions and blessings are suspended.

Suspension of volunteer services at Capuchin Soup Kitchen extended through May 11, 2020

Posted Wednesday, April 1, 2020 12:45 pm ET

To continue mitigating the spread of COVID-19 and after careful assessment, the Capuchin Soup Kitchen continues to suspend all volunteer services until at least Monday, May 11, 2020. At the conclusion of that time, we will assess the situation to discern an appropriate timeframe to resume volunteer services. This change affects volunteers at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen Meldrum and Conner meal sites, Capuchin Services Center, Earthworks Urban Farm, Rosa Parks Children’s Program and On the Rise Bakery.

Capuchin Soup Kitchen announces adjusted meal hours

Posted Wednesday, April 1, 2020 11:10 am ET

The Capuchin Soup Kitchen is announcing adjusted hours for “to-go” meals for this week:

  • Meldrum meal site (1264 Meldrum): 11:00 am – 1:00 pm Monday, Wednesday and Friday
  • Conner meal site (4390 Conner): 11:00 am – 1:00 pm Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday “to-go” meals will be served from the parking lot

These changes happened March 31 as the result of an individual who had been working at the Conner meal site testing positive for COVID-19. The individual is currently recovering in isolation at home, and is experiencing mild symptoms.

Staff and friars who worked at the Conner meal site will be quarantined at home for 14 days while monitoring for symptoms. The Conner site building is scheduled for a sanitization process. Concerned soup kitchen guests and volunteers should contact their health care provider with questions.

For the past several weeks, the bakers at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen’s “On the Rise Bakery” along with staff and friars at the Meldrum and Conner sites, have built a stockpile of shelf-stable meals that will continue to be served from the parking lots at 1264 Meldrum and 4390 Conner. As always, meals are served to all, with no questions asked. The hours of the meals and the availability of staff at each site will vary from week to week. The Capuchin Soup Kitchen’s Jefferson House Program and the ROPE Program continue to function and the Capuchin Services Center is expected to be back in operation early next week.

"These have been challenging times for everybody in metro Detroit and around the world," said Br. Jerry Johnson, OFM Capuchin, executive director of the Capuchin Soup Kitchen. "Unfortunately, we are running with a lean team of staff and friars and when we have somebody get sick, it has a big impact on our ability to serve. Unfortunately, we anticipate that this will only intensify in the weeks ahead. We are grateful for the support of so many during these challenging days, and be assured of our prayers for all who are suffering at this time. We will continue to do all that we can to accompany people through these trying times."

Concerning the Capuchin Soup Kitchen Meldrum meal site

Posted Tuesday, March 24, 2020 5:25 pm ET

An employee at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen meal site located at 1264 Meldrum Street in Detroit has tested positive for COVID-19. Take-away meals will continue to be served at the Meldrum site soup kitchen during their normal serving hours Monday through Friday from 8:30 am to 9:30 am and from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. The Capuchin Soup Kitchen meal site at 4390 Conner Street remains open with take-away meal service Monday through Friday from 8:30 am to 9:30 am and from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm and on Saturday from 8:30 am - 9:30 am and from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. Social worker hours at the Conner site soup kitchen are Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 2:30 pm.

Staff who may have been exposed to the Coronavirus have been sent home and asked to self-quarantine and monitor for symptoms of COVID-19 for a 14-day period. Concerned soup kitchen guests and volunteers should contact their health care provider with questions.

Capuchin Services Center to temporarily close, Meldrum and Conner meal sites to remain open

Posted Friday, March 20, 2020 1:25 pm ET

Today we learned that an individual who had been exposed to COVID-19 had been present at the Capuchin Services Center, located at 6333 Medbury. To mitigate the spread of COVID-19, Capuchin Services Center has sent home all its staff for a 14-day self-quarantine. The Capuchin Services Center is closed for several days to be sanitized. After cleaning is complete, we will reassess and determine a date for re-opening.

Capuchin Services Center is a food pantry, clothing distribution and social work service program. It is one of several sites for programs of the Capuchin Soup Kitchen.

Meal services at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen’s 1264 Meldrum and 4390 Conner meal sites are not affected by the temporary closure of the Capuchin Services Center and remain open.

Capuchin Community Services announces additional changes to meal program

Posted Tuesday, March 17, 2020 8:20 pm ET

Based on guidelines from federal, state and local officials, effective immediately, Capuchin Community Services announces the following changes at Saint Ben’s Community Meal:

  • We will be switching to a take-away only meal service. The dining hall will be closed until further notice.
  • Volunteer service is suspended indefinitely. Meals will be prepared and distributed only by Capuchin friars and paid staff.

We ask for the intercession of Blessed Solanus Casey and Saint Patrick.

On the Rise Bakery Cafe closed until further notice

Posted March 17, 2020 8:29 am ET

On the Rise Bakery Cafe is closed until further notice. Parish bake sales are suspended until further notice.

Capuchin Services Center no longer accepting in-kind donations of non-food items

Posted March 17, 2020 8:25 am ET

During this time of the Coronavirus outbreak, the Capuchin Services Center will be focused mainly on social work and food distribution. Therefore we are suspending all in-kind donation items, except for non-perishable food, until at least April 6. We will provide updates as we go.

Capuchin Community Services introduces new measures to mitigate spread of Coronavirus

Posted March 16, 2020 4:31 pm ET

Capuchin Community Services plans to continue serving Milwaukeeans who are struggling through difficult times. Based on conversations and guidance from public health officials and community partners, we are implementing the following changes at Saint Ben’s Community Meal and the House of Peace to take effect immediately in order to do our part to slow the spread of the Coronavirus.

At Saint Ben’s

  • We are suspending the shower program
    • Everyone who arrives for a shower will be given a shirt, socks, and underwear
  • We are limiting laundry services to insure there is sufficient safe distances in our facility
  • In order to maintain safe distances, we have changed seating in the Meal Hall
    • This will likely result in longer waits and a shorter time for each guest to have dinner
    • We are obliged to ask guests to wait outside for the foreseeable future
  • We will continue to offer drug prescription co-pays every day; on Wednesdays we will continue to offer bus tickets for medical appointments, as well as hygiene kits
    • These will be provided in the foyer of 930 W State Street
  • The ID/birth certificate program is under review
  • The eyeglasses program will be suspended 

At the House of Peace

  • The Clothing Closet ministry will be suspended
    • No new donations will be accepted
    • No new appointments will be accepted
  • Access to the Emergency Food Pantry will be on a person-by-person basis, which may result in wait times
    • We regret this, but it is necessary to maintain the building safely for all
  • The UW-M Community Health clinic and the Marquette Legal Clinic have suspended operations
  • The eyeglasses ministry has been suspended
  • The On the Wing art program has been suspended
  • The Bible Study ministry has been suspended

These changes will have significant impacts on our guests. We ask for your continued support and prayer. With confidence in God, we pray that this outbreak will be brought under control.

 For more information, contact Capuchin Community Services at (414) 933-1300

Capuchin Soup Kitchen food sites transition to take-away service

Posted March 16, 2020 10:14 am ET, updated 1:02 pm ET

Effective no later than Wednesday, March 18, 2020, the Capuchin Soup Kitchen's Conner and Meldrum meal sites will transition to carry-out service during regular meal hours rather than having meals in the dining room. The dining room will be reserved for a carefully spaced limited number of guests in need of social worker services. The Capuchin Services Center will have a similar approach. Pre-packed boxes of food will be distributed in place of using our 'shopper's choice' pantry that is organized like a grocery store. In order to receive services at the Capuchin Services Center, guest will need to call ahead to make an appointment, as usual. The Conner and Meldrum meal sites work on a 'walk-in' basis.

These steps are being taken to mitigate the spread of Coronavirus and to continue to provide the Capuchin Soup Kitchen's most essential services: food and social work. The Capuchin Soup Kitchen plans to remain open, providing hospitality and care for all who need it. However, this new model will create challenges, and so we ask those who visit to bring extra patience in the days and weeks ahead as this transition rolls out.

St. Lawrence Seminary High School suspends classes

Posted March 13, 2020 8:50 pm ET

Due to the mandate issued today by Gov. Tony Evers of the State of Wisconsin, St. Lawrence Seminary High School will not resume classes until further notice. Students will not return on campus on Sunday, March 15, as previously indicated.

Volunteer services at Capuchin Soup Kitchen programs suspended March 16 through April 4

Posted March 13, 2020 4:22 pm ET

To mitigate the spread of COVID-19, the Capuchin Soup Kitchen is suspending all volunteer services effective Monday, March 16, 2020 through Saturday, April 4, 2020. At the conclusion of that time, we will assess the situation to discern an appropriate timeframe to resume volunteer services. Volunteers with scheduled service times from March 16 - April 4 will be contacted for rescheduling. This change affects volunteers at the Capuchin Soup Kitchen Meldrum and Conner meal sites, Capuchin Services Center, Earthworks Urban Farm, Rosa Parks Children’s Program and On the Rise Bakery.

With some adjustments, the Capuchin Soup Kitchen plans to remain open using existing staff to continue to serve.

The Capuchin Franciscan Province of St. Joseph announces COVID-19 mitigation plan

Posted March 12, 2020 4:30 pm ET

Following careful discernment and review of available facts and data concerning the COVID-19 outbreak, the Province has concluded that we must do our part to mitigate the spread of the infectious COVID-19 virus. Executing this strategy will have far-reaching effects on our ministries and those we serve. However, we firmly believe it is in the best interest of public health and safety that we take these steps to slow down the spread of COVID-19 as best we are able. To that end, we announce the following changes to begin taking effect tomorrow.

Solanus Casey Center to close indefinitely effective Friday, March 13, 2020
The Solanus Casey Center will be closed to the public effective Friday, March 13, 2020. With the continued spread of the COVID-19 virus the Capuchins have chosen after careful discernment to take these extraordinary steps in order to mitigate the spread of the disease. Further information, including when we will re-open, will be released as the situation evolves over time.
 
Masses, blessing of the sick services and other events will be closed to the public, but will be livestreamed via the Blessed Solanus Casey Facebook Page and the Solanus Casey Center website so that the faithful may still participate online. All special events held at the Solanus Casey Center are canceled until further notice and may be rescheduled for a later date. Confessions will still be available. 
 
As always, prayer requests may be submitted online or by calling (313) 579-2100. 

Solanus Casey Center employees will report to work on Friday, March 13 as usual. 

Capuchin Retreat Center to close indefinitely effective Friday, March 13, 2020
After careful discernment, Capuchin Retreat has made the difficult decision to close the retreat center effective Friday, March 13, 2020 and suspend activities indefinitely in order to do our part to contain the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Retreatants and groups who have scheduled a retreat through April 4 and have already paid will receive a full refund. More information will be communicated concerning re-opening as the situation evolves.

The Capuchin Soup Kitchen will remain open to serve those in need. *See notice of transition to carry-out service March 16, 2020 10:14 am ET

Capuchin Community Services will remain open to serve those in need and will abide by the advisories and requirements of public health officials. See new measures in notice dated March 16, 2020 4:30pm ET

St. Lawrence Seminary High School will remain open. *See notice of suspension of classes dated March 13, 2020 8:50 pm ET

With faith in God, we ask the intercession of Blessed Solanus Casey for healing for all affected by COVID-19 around the world.

*** This page will be continuously updated ***