TruLight Ministries Expands Breakfast Program

ZANESVILLE, Ohio – A local organization is stepping up to address hunger issues while serving a positive message during the process.

TruLight Ministries Executive Director Pastor Ed Swartz shared how community generosity has helped his organization expand their breakfast program at the Putnam Avenue facility.

“So this is our new dining room. We serve free breakfast to the homeless, the low income. And anybody who wants to come in is welcome to come in and get a free breakfast. We’ve been doing it for years using our sanctuary and just a small warming station to provide that service. And so for years, we wanted to put in a dining room and a commercial kitchen and so it took us time to gather up the funding, get the blueprints, line up all the contractors and such and get it put together,” Swartz said.

The building needed a roof before the interior upgrades began and the funding for that was provided by the J.W. & M.H. Straker Charitable Foundation to begin the $60,000 Dollar renovation.

“We can hold 68 at one time, but during breakfast it’s kind of an open door… You know people are coming and going, so we don’t ever have 68 at once, in here,” Swartz said. “I believe we reach out to those who feel discarded, feel tossed away by society, community, even some of their own families have cut them off and don’t want anything to do with them. And I’m not saying they didn’t deserve that but somebody just needs to lend a hand and help people get up and try to, you know, start the day right.”

Swartz noted that just the feeling of being a part of something can be the circumstance that helps to brighten somebody’s day and that the volunteers are what makes the program function and are always needed.