I started volunteering at the soup kitchen in the summer of 2015 when I moved to Long Beach. I quickly became one of the cooks! I love people, I love cooking and the thought of anyone going hungry is very upsetting to me. The soup kitchen combines my love of people, cooking and feeding the food insecure.

I love being a part of a special group of people who give so much of their time and effort. There is nothing more rewarding than hearing the guests say thank-you and tell us how much they appreciate us and how good the food is! Volunteering is without a doubt, one of the best things I do in my life.

Hi! I am Melissa, a small business owner and stay at home mom. I am a new volunteer and started early 2023. It gives me great satisfaction working at LBSK and giving back to my community. The volunteers I’ve had a pleasure to work with are truly great individuals. I enjoy helping the chef prep the hot meals and make sandwiches for the community. It’s humbling and heart warming to help hand out the meals and have interactions with the community as well. Looking forward to volunteering for years to come.

I started working in the Long Beach Soup Kitchen a little over 4 years ago when I moved back to my home town of Long Beach. At that time we were serving inside. As Covid hit, we continued to serve meals, although outside, to those in need, which were many.

I have always enjoyed my volunteer work, in Connecticut and Manhattan. In Manhattan I organized a Lip Sync contest in one of the Children's Welfare Hotels. Great success. The winner got a limousine drive and a back stage pass to see the rapper LL Cool J..Very rewarding to see the kids compete and cheer each other on..

I very much enjoy my volunteer work at The Soup Kitchen, a truly rewarding experience to help those in need and to work along side my wonderful dedicated Soup Kitchen team!

I started volunteering at the LBSK about a year ago. After first working as an elementary school teacher in Magnolia School in Long Beach for 8 years, followed by 34 years as elementary principal in Oceanside, I decided that my next chapter included volunteering and giving back to the community. I started volunteering at Cohen’s Children Hospital working and playing in the recreation room with children who were receiving cancer treatments. I also volunteered at the Hospital for Special Surgery in Manhattan. Along with these volunteer opportunities, I worked as a mentor/supervisor to Hofstra University graduate students studying to be future teachers. With all these paid and unpaid opportunities, I most enjoyed, and continue to enjoy, the relationships forged between the people I work with The LBSK gives me the opportunity to combine my love for cooking, to make people laugh and to use my organizational skills to support the great work here at LBSK.

I got involved with the soup kitchen when I approached a table at one of Long Beach’s festivals. This was in 2003 or 04 I think. We have gone through many iterations since then. When I started we had no stove. We cooked everything in microwave or on hot plates - not an easy task. We had no air conditioning in summer and I remember one day the temp in the kitchen hit 104 ! (We had put up a thermometer). I helped to prepare dinners and serve our guests at tables as we did up until Covid. Changes began when one of our guests, who was unruly, complained to the INN and people from the INN came to check us out and gave us a hard time. The head cook and President were asked to leave and some others followed. I stayed and continued to support our needy population. I watched as we went through several head cooks, dish washers and other volunteers. Then Rob came on board we got more organized and better, more professional equipment as a result of his efforts. I was assigned the task of Facilities Manager as I am very handy and understand lots of mechanics. We inherited an old slicer that was here and I got working . It often need professional repair. I was the only one who could use this slicer and we used that up until a few years ago when we purchased our new Hobart machine

I started to volunteer at the Long Beach Soup Kitchen in 2011 after I retired from TNT.

I volunteered on Mondays and my first job was making the lunch bags. After one of our long time volunteers passed away, I was assigned to making sandwiches and ladling soup. At that time we were part of The INN in Hempstead. When the Treasurer left, I took on that position as Treasurer. In 2017 we formed our own 501C3 and Incorporated.

We had a paid employee at the time and had to setup payroll and obtain workman’s comp and disability insurance. It was a learning experience.

Now that we no longer serve inside due to COVID, I still make sandwiches and ladle soup and put the hot meal and soup in the lunch bag.

Volunteering at the Soup Kitchen has been a rewarding experience.

I retired from Nassau BOCES as Deputy Superintendent in June of 2016. In September I volunteered to work at the LBSK, received the required training, and became a substitute when needed. I did go back to work in January as a part-time interim administrator in four Nassau County School districts during the next four years. At some point, after about two years, I was invited to join the Wednesday team and have worked with them ever since. During the nation’s COVID challenges I also worked on the Friday team for about a year. Also, my wife, Dianne Robinson, and I work one Saturday per month. I serve as the compliance person for the organization as well. Serving our guests both a hot and cold meal each day is what we are about. It doesn’t matter why they come to us or how their circumstances have caused them to do so. It is about serving good people in need of food. Except for some organizational skills, I brought no special talents in the kitchen to this organization. I have learned much from my fellow volunteers and draw immense satisfaction from being a part of this important endeavor.