When a Loaves and Fishes meal site at St. Gabriel the Archangel in Hopkins closed in late 2025, it marked an abrupt end to a familiar source of support for many in the community. For St. Gabriel and Our Lady of Grace (OLG) in Edina, the closure became something more: a moment of discernment and a call to act.
Rather than focusing on what was lost, leaders and volunteers at OLG and St. Gabriel asked how they could continue serving their neighbors in a way that was sustainable and rooted in their identity as a Eucharistic people.
The answer took shape in early 2026 with the launch of Our Lady’s Table, a parish-led ministry offering weekly meals with a renewed sense of dignity, connection and Catholic hospitality. What began as a response to disruption has grown into a collaborative, faith-driven effort that reflects the parishes shared mission.
A turning point
For years, OLG and St. Gabriel were active participants in the Minneapolis-based nonprofit Loaves and Fishes network, which was founded in 1982 to provide healthy meals to Minnesotans in areas of greatest need. Starting with one site in Minneapolis and one in St. Paul, Loaves and Fishes has grown to include sites in more than a dozen counties around the Twin Cities and rural Minnesota, according to its website.
St. Gabriel’s commercial-grade kitchen made it an essential host site in the Hopkins area and OLG volunteers regularly served at multiple locations throughout Minneapolis.
“In May 2025, OLG relaunched serving through Loaves and Fishes at St. Gabriel’s,” said Cosette DeCesare, pastoral care and outreach coordinator at Our Lady of Grace. “We served there until November, when Loaves and Fishes abruptly closed the site.”
The closure was part of a broader restructuring effort. “The decision to close some of our sites was not made lightly,” said Mel McCormick, director of operations for Loaves and Fishes. “Rising food costs, increased operational expenses and growing demand have all taken a toll. To ensure long-term sustainability, we had to make strategic adjustments.”
For the parishes, the change created both a gap and an opportunity. Without a third-party organization coordinating meals, they were prompted to consider what they could accomplish on their own.
“We decided to pivot and respond so as to fill the void,” DeCesare said. “We started a new program and named it Our Lady’s Table.”
The shift was significant. No longer simply hosting and volunteering in a program, the parishes became its architects — shaping a ministry that reflected their values, resources and vision.
Building something new
At St. Gabriel, pastor Father Paul Haverstock had long considered what a fully parish-led initiative might look like. The closure of the Loaves and Fishes site, though sudden, felt like a moment of clarity.
“It feels good as a Catholic church to serve those who are in need,” he said. “It’s a huge part of the Gospel to meet people’s material needs, just like it is to meet their spiritual needs. While we were always grateful for Loaves and Fishes, there were limitations. I had often thought that if they were ever not here, it would be meaningful to create something in-house where we could also share the faith more explicitly.”
That opportunity arrived quickly. “They reached out on a Friday and said Monday would be their last day,” he recalled.
Within months, the parishes organized a new model. Launched in February 2026, Our Lady’s Table now serves weekly to-go meals every Tuesday evening from St. Gabriel’s kitchen.
Each week, volunteers prepare between 50 and 75 meals. “Typically, we make a hearty casserole and a side salad,” DeCesare said. “We include soft fruit and a cookie, and we also prepare PB&J (peanut butter and jelly) sandwiches for guests to take with them for the next day.”
Much of the food is sourced through Food To People, a Catholic-run organization dedicated to rescuing high-quality surplus food and redirecting it to those in need. This partnership helps ensure that meals are cost-effective and environmentally responsible. Additional support comes from local Catholic-owned businesses, including a weekly donation of fresh-baked cookies from ChunkChunk Ice Cream in Hopkins.
The operation reflects the two parishes’ shared commitment. Volunteers from OLG and St. Gabriel alternate weeks and frequently serve side-by-side, creating a rhythm of collaboration that has strengthened relationships across parish lines.
“The prep, package and distribute model is familiar,” DeCesare said. “But the difference is that our parishioners are building and running this from start to finish. There’s a real sense of ownership.”
That sense of local initiative is something McCormick of Loaves and Fishes finds encouraging. “We are incredibly glad to see other organizations move into these spaces,” she said. “The goal has never been ownership — it’s impact.”
More than a meal
While the program emphasizes efficiency and accessibility, its leaders are equally focused on fostering connection.
“Food access isn’t just about calories,” McCormick said. “It’s about reliability, safety and relationships. Guests build trust with the people serving them.”
That relational dimension is central to Our Lady’s Table. “Even in brief exchanges, there’s an opportunity for connection,” DeCesare said. “It becomes more than distribution — it becomes encounter.”
For Father Kevin Finnegan, pastor of Our Lady of Grace, that encounter is essential to the ministry’s long-term vision.
“We need to find ways for more people to serve together, because that in itself is good for the soul,” he said. Reflecting on the COVID-19 pandemic years, he added, “We got used to distributing food for people to take home and eat alone. That was necessary at the time, but now we want something more. We want people to know one another and share in something together.”
Ultimately, he said, the goal is to draw people out of isolation and into community. “We want to bring people into the family of God.”
A distinctly Catholic effort
While Our Lady’s Table builds on the legacy of past partnerships, it has developed a distinct identity as a Catholic-led initiative. From its sourcing partnerships to its emphasis on hospitality and human dignity, the ministry reflects a holistic understanding of service.
For Father Haverstock, it is a natural expression of the Church’s mission. “The Catholic Church has always met material needs as a way of opening the door to spiritual care,” he said. “It’s about being the presence of Christ in the neighborhood. When we feed the hungry, we are tending to the body of Christ.”
Clarity of purpose has inspired strong support from both parishes. “Volunteer slots are filled months in advance,” DeCesare said. “The response has been immediate and generous.”
The collaboration has also created momentum for future growth. Leaders from both parishes hope to expand the initiative and invite additional parish communities to participate.
Looking ahead
As the ministry continues to develop, its leaders are already imagining what comes next. One priority is moving beyond a strictly to-go model toward opportunities for shared meals and deeper fellowship.
“I’d love to see it grow into something where people can sit down together,” Father Finnegan said. “There’s something powerful about sharing a meal in the same space.”
DeCesare echoed that hope. “We’re working toward offering a regular, in-person community meal alongside the to-go service,” she said.
For Father Haverstock, the long-term vision is even broader. “I’d love to see us serving meals most days of the week,” he said. “A place where people can gather, share food and hear a message of encouragement. That’s what a parish is meant to be — a place where everyone is fed.”
Even in its early months, Our Lady’s Table has made a tangible impact. Volunteers regularly hear from guests who are grateful to see the return of consistent meal service in the area.
“We’ve lost count of how many people have thanked us,” DeCesare said. “And the neighborhood children are especially excited about the cookies.”
Those small moments of gratitude point to something larger: a community responding together to a shared need. “Hunger is a community-wide challenge,” McCormick said. “It requires nonprofits, volunteers, donors, neighbors and faith groups all working together.”
In the case of Our Lady’s Table, that collaboration has taken on a distinctly local and deeply personal form — one rooted in faith, sustained by partnership and focused on encounter.
What began as an unexpected closure has become a new expression of Catholic life in action. As the ministry grows, Father Haverstock said, its guiding principle remains simple and enduring: to ensure that all who come are welcomed, nourished and known.
