Trenton Area Soup Kitchen Celebrates 30 Years Of Service [AUDIO]

The Trenton Area Soup Kitchen, or TASK, has recently reached a milestone of serving meals for 30 years to area residents in need.

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The charity was launched 30 years ago in the basement of a Trenton church with their amount of meals served increasing consistently since.

Today, that one soup kitchen has expanded into several satellite sites, which are expected to handle more than 200,000 meals this year throughout the Greater Mercer County area.

"Our service is unconditional," Executive Director Dennis Micai explained. "Anyone that needs a meal is welcome here at TASK."

TASK is a private, non-profit, so they receive only about three percent government funding. The rest of their operating budget is privately raised from corporate support, donations and grants.

In addition to feeding people in need, the charity provides a slew of services to help people learn skills to become self-sufficient, including education programs, arts, performing arts, a computer lab, and an on-site social worker.

"We like to say people come here first to feed their belly, then we feed their mind, and we end up feeding the whole person," Micai said.

Micai says that while he is extremely proud of serving the community for 30 years, it also reveals a sad reality.

"It shows that we've been able to provide a quality service for 30 years, but there's a sad part to that, that we had to be in business for 30 years. And, unfortunately, our numbers are increasing."

One trend they are noticing is an increase of families and senior citizens stopping in for meals.

"We're hoping that when people come here that whatever impact we have on their lives that when they leave that their life is better."

Learn more about the great work of TASK by visiting their website and checking them out on Facebook.

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