On September 6, Matt Talbot Kitchen & Outreach (mtko.org) celebrated 30 years of serving the Lincoln community. A birthday party was held at the community kitchen and outreach center with brief remarks from Mayor Leirion Gaylor Baird and Executive Director Susanne Blue.

Matt Talbot serves a diverse group of individuals and families who are struggling to maintain housing or who are experiencing homelessness. Last year over 2,000 guests were served across all services, a 36% increase from the previous year. As a result of expanding programs to meet community needs, Matt Talbot is undergoing a facility expansion. “The Bold Hope Expands” project will strengthen the agency’s outreach efforts by building a north addition to the existing facility and a new three-stall garage for storing items for housing clients and the agency van.

However, this project is more than just physical space. It allows staff to meet privately with guests in a space near the dining room, host nutrition classes for volunteers, facilitate tenant and alcohol education classes, and much more. Through this expansion more hungry people will be fed, more people without a home will find shelter, and more citizens will be empowered to become self-sufficient.

For the past 30 years and counting, Matt Talbot Kitchen & Outreach has been helping individuals and families facing poverty and homelessness find possibilities when things seem impossible. Learn more at mtko.org.