A lunch in the park of the Catholic Academy castle, music and a festive atmosphere. Thus, the friends of the Sant'Egidio soup kitchen in the Schwabing district, in the heart of Munich, have met again in compliance with the health regulations in force in Germany,.
Sant'Egidio soup kitchen in Munich has never closed in the long months of restrictions and closures. More and more people, mostly homeless and elderly people living alone, have referred to this essential service. Since February 2020, the soup kitchen has opened an additional day and served 600 full meals a week.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic, more than 50% of those who come to the soup kitchen are homeless. They live on the streets, in emergency shelters and earn their living by begging. Recently, young people from Eastern Europe have been looking for work in Munich to support their families at home. In order to be able to send all the money home, they sacrifice themselves and live in makeshift places so as not to have to pay expensive rent.
Every year 20,000 people apply for social housing, but only 3,000 flats are available. Those who cannot find a flat seek accommodation in facilities for the homeless, many of them are refugees.
The soup kitchen provides food and combats loneliness. It is a great support for many elderly people to meet friendly faces, to have a meeting point during the week. A carefully cooked meal helps to save money, to be able to pay bills on low pensions. A feast with elderly and homeless people was an eagerly awaited and spontaneous event, a sign of a bond that has grown stronger during the pandemic. We have become even more aware that no one is saved alone as Pope Francis said.
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