by Bob Gallucci
Heaven Sent Kitchens, a free eat-in food kitchen located at Jesus is Lord Ministries Church #2 in East Nassau, officially opened its doors for the first time at 8 am on July 26. The kitchen will be serving breakfast and lunch
[private]from 8 am to 1 pm every Tuesday. Hot or cold cereal, toast, coffee and tea will be available from 8 to 11 am. Soup, bologna and cheese, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches will be served during the 11 am to 1 pm lunch hours, along with hot and cold beverages. Additional food offerings will be available when possible.
On hand for the opening were Rensselaer County Legislators Alexander Shannon and Judith Breselor, who presented a Commendation to Heaven Sent Kitchens for “Establishing a Free Food Kitchen in Rensselaer County.” Town of Nassau Supervisor David Fleming was also present. Supervisor Fleming personally gifted the kitchen its town dump permit. “Hunger has become
epidemic in this country,” said Pastor George W. Fudge. “It has also become a reality for many in our community, both old and young, which is why I am so excited about the opening of this food kitchen.” Heaven Sent Kitchens is in the ‘new’ Jesus Is Lord Ministry (formerly the East Nassau Baptist Church), at 6447 Route 66 in East Nassau (across from the post office), in the newly decorated annex next to the main church. The ‘kitchen’ seats 18 guests at 3 large tables, plus another 12 at the 24 foot counter.
It is run solely on the generous donations of its supporters. The ‘kitchen’ is overseen by many loving and compassionate volunteers, led by George W. Fudge, pastor of both the East Nassau Church and the original Jesus Is Lord Ministry in Stephentown. He has said that, “Heaven Sent Kitchens is a fulfillment of a dream to be able to provide for people in need physically, mentally and spiritually.” Not only has the former East Nassau Sunday School annex been transformed into Heaven Sent Kitchens, but the main church building has also gone through an impressive transformation as well. As Pastor Fudge put it, “this has been an all hands undertaking’ with God’s handprint on everything.” Getting the Heaven Sent Kitchens’ building ready in less than three months for the recent opening would not have been possible without countless volunteer hours by a small group of community members and friends of Jesus is Lord Ministries. “Without their help, my vision to help feed our hungry neighbors would never have come to fruition,” said Pastor Fudge. Heaven Sent Kitchens is being funded “out of the pockets of people with caring hearts.” according to the Pastor. Pastor Fudge has expressed his desire to have church services at the East Nassau church within a few weeks and possibly expand the kitchen hours to include Thursdays.
Pastor Fudge was ordained on October 17, 1997. He formally started sharing God’s Word from the King James Bible in August 2007 when Jesus is Lord Ministries took up residence at a little church on North Nassau Rd. They moved into their permanent home on Route 43 in Stephentown two years ago. Jesus Is Lord Ministries is a non-denominational Isaiah 28:9-10 teaching ministry located at 366 Route 43 in Stephentown. Sunday services are at 9:30 am with Tuesday prayer meetings at 6:30 pm, Wednesday bible study at 7 pm and movie night on the 2nd Friday of every month at 7 pm. For more information on how you can volunteer and/or contribute to Heaven Sent Kitchens, contact Pastor Fudge at (518) 369-5237. Or write to Jesus Is Lord Ministries at P.O.Box 124 East Nassau, NY 12062. Heaven Sent Kitchens and Jesus is Lord Ministries are nonprofit 501(c) 3 organizations.[/private]