Three Meals a Day: How Your Kindness Feeds Our Children

Tonight, 352 children at St. Irene will go to sleep with full stomachs. You made that happen.

For many of our children, the meals they eat at St. Irene are the only meals they can count on. Before they came to us, some went to bed hungry more nights than not. Today, thanks to your generosity, every one of them receives three warm meals, every single day.

352

children fed every day

warm meals each day

92.8%

of gifts go straight to service projects

“A hungry child cannot learn, cannot play and cannot dream. A fed child can do all three.”

You took our children from open fires to a modern kitchen

Not long ago, every meal at the mission was cooked over open fires in a small, makeshift wooden kitchen. Our cooks worked in smoke and cramped conditions, determined that no child would go hungry.

Meals being cooked over open fires in the old mission kitchen — Before: cooking over open fires.

A cook preparing food in large pots in the old wooden kitchen — Large pots, prepared by hand, for hundreds of children.

Then you stepped in. In November 2025, the foundation of a modern kitchen was laid, and by May 2026 it was standing at the heart of the mission: clean, safe and built entirely by the generosity of people like you. Thank you. This kitchen is yours.

Every meal is a moment of love

At St. Irene, meals are shared as a family. Our caregivers serve the youngest children their snacks and sit with them on the grass. The older children gather in the open field to eat, talk and give thanks together.

A caregiver serving snacks to young children sitting on the grass — A caregiver serving snack time with love.

Young children eating together on the grass — Little ones sharing a meal together.

A young child enjoying a drink at snack time — A small treat, a big smile.

Children being served a meal outdoors at the mission — Lunch is served at the mission.

The next step: help us build a dining hall

Our children still eat outside in the open field, exposed to the hot sun, strong winds, rain and dust. When the weather turns, mealtime becomes a struggle. A proper dining hall would give every child shelter, dignity and comfort at every meal, and a place to learn and gather together.

You built the kitchen. Will you help us build the dining hall?

What your gift does

Feeds a child today

Your gift puts warm, nutritious meals on a child’s plate.

Builds the dining hall

Bring shelter and dignity to every mealtime.

Grows healthy children

Good food means strength to learn, play and stay well.

Become a sponsor

One child. One sponsor. A whole new future.

$35/mo

Share in a child’s care