Stories of Hope
Stories of Hope is an e-communication that is sent to our subscribers each month. These stories will be brought to you through the voices of our staff, volunteers, donors, patients, and community partners. Our goal is to highlight the hope that is present in our community through the interconnected world of faith, healing, service, and advocacy. To receive these stories as well as other important messages, click here to subscribe.
December 2025
This past October, Trevor Daugherty, owner of Edible Michiana with his wife Breanna, reached out to Center for Healing & Hope with an idea to offer a prepared meal to neighbors in need during the holiday season.
“In light of everything happening regarding SNAP, and well, just in general, I’ve been thinking a lot about what it would take to give away meals during this holiday season,” Trevor shared in an email. Five days later we convened a meeting at Center for Healing & Hope involving Trevor and representatives from CHH to talk through the details and determine what might be possible.
The idea came together quickly, with a goal of distributing meals before Christmas. There were many logistical unknowns, and ultimately we determined the best option would be to provide prepared, frozen meals that families could heat up and enjoy at a time of their choosing.
Volunteers pack chicken, tamales, and sides into tote bags at Center for Healing & Hope.
Each meal consisted of a whole chicken from Loupa’s Chicken, 8 tamales from a local resident, two sides of vegetables, and three pints of ice cream. Four hundred sides were donated by Maple City Market and six hundred pints were offered as a donation by The Chief. Other partners from the community joined the effort with financial contributions to purchase the chicken, tamales, and supplies.
We handed out 175 meal vouchers to Center for Healing & Hope patients, clients, and program volunteers, and shared 25 vouchers with The Window. The service itself took place on Saturday, December 20 between 9am-12pm in the south parking lot at Center for Healing & Hope. In total, 91 community members redeemed their vouchers, and the remaining meals were distributed by local church partners and volunteers.
“We’re actually quite happy with being able to hand out 91 of the meals Saturday morning,” said Daniel Tackett, Director of Marketing & Development at Center for Healing & Hope. “We know there are people in our community who are not feeling safe and secure enough to be out and about, and that’s alarming. We’ll keep doing what we can to be a safe and welcoming space for all, and we’ll count our successes as helping even just one person, and then the next person, and so on…”
Jane Ross Richer, Immigrant Resource Coordinator at Center for Healing & Hope, was able to quickly coordinate with local church leaders and volunteers to distribute the remaining meals to community members in need. Churches that helped distribute meals on Saturday were Prairie Street Mennonite Church, Comunidad Cristian Adulam, North Goshen Mennonite Church (who canvassed the north Goshen neighborhood to deliver meals to residents), Iglesia Sinai, and Iglesia de Dios Pentecostal. One volunteer, Sandra, even went around Elkhart giving meals to unhoused folks and dropping some off at Faith Mission. “I’m grateful for the willingness of these church partners and volunteers to help distribute the rest of the meals to people in need,” said Jane.
This unique partnership was highlighted by Edible Michiana’s desire to give back to the community. “When the idea came into focus, we spent a lot of time considering how to make the most of our resources and not let perfect get in the way of good,” said Trevor. “We made a plan, worked quickly, and I’m proud of what we were able to accomplish. It was a highlight to see the excitement families had when receiving their meals. Bre and I are grateful to live in a community that is willing to jump in and support these types of initiatives.”
“We’re incredibly grateful for this amazing partnership,” said Missy Schrock, Executive Director at Center for Healing & Hope. “Edible Michiana could have taken this event in many different directions and been successful. We’re humbled that they reached out to Center for Healing & Hope to share this goodwill with those we serve. We wish them continued success in all they do!”
Thank you to the following donors for answering the call on short notice to make the service possible: Wieland Designs, Karmin Wieland, Crew Seating, Robin and Marcus Ebright Zehr, Eighth Street Mennonite Church, Assembly Mennonite Church, and Everence. Thank you to Maple City Market and The Chief for the generous donation of sides and ice cream. Thank you to Goshen Brewing Company for sharing freezer space. And thank you to the Edible Michiana team and all of the incredible volunteers who came on Saturday to pack and distribute meals!
Learn more about Edible Michiana at: https://ediblemichiana.
2025 ARCHIVE
January – Greeted with a Smile
February – Seeing it Through
March – In Bloom
April – Reflecting on Connecting
May – Canned Goods & Common Ground
June – Nuway Construction Charity Golf Outing
August – Office of Solidarity with Immigrants (OSI)
October – The Veva (Hershberger) and Leonard Garber Tribute Terrace
November – Giving Tuesday