Announcer> A production of the South Carolina Educational Television Network.

♪ Visitor> What I like best about the kitchen... are the people.

The people.

Visitor 2> If they didn't have the shelter and a place to eat, I don't think a lot of people would get back.

I think a lot of them would end up at Butner, or a lot of them would end up out in the street or dead even.

Ty> The best people hang out here.

Voice off camera> Why?

Ty> They're the most real people.

They're the people with not much like... if you check out Jesus and the friends he had, they still hang out here.

So that's why I come here.

Leonard> The Chapel Hill area is, a growing area.

I've been here all my life and... and I drove cab most of my life.

And I've seen the cost of living go up and up, and up.

In that way, people just can't survive on what they make.

They have a salary and by the time they pay the rent and the food bill and utilities, they don't have much left.

So the community kitchen is set to this community in my opinion.

Volunteer> When you're painting a picture and you may have two things that don't work, but you manipulate the shapes and the colors and so on, you are able to make them work, and it's the same thing in the kitchen.

You get personalities that are conflicting.

And you... sort of get people to learn how to work together in spite of their differences.

♪ Wandering ♪ ♪ in my soul ♪ ♪ ♪ Where it stops ♪ ♪ nobody knows ♪ ♪ ♪ I'm just wandering ♪ ♪ ♪ in my soul ♪ ♪ ♪ Where it stops ♪ ♪ nobody knows where ♪ ♪ ♪ When I was just a lad ♪ ♪ the people were so glad ♪ ♪ ♪ When I became a boy ♪ ♪ ♪ I didn't have many choices ♪ ♪ ♪ And now that I'm a man ♪ ♪ this is where ♪ I still stand ♪ ♪ Wandering ♪ ♪ Dwayne> Me and the... we shared just about everything.

She would tell me that Dwayne... Don't... don't ever... let anybody tell you that you ain't something.

Because you are something.

You are somebody.

She always tell me, Dwayne always look up.

Because when people see you looking down, people say that you are... that... that you are nothing, you know.

Right?

Because you are somebody.

♪ Somewhere ♪ over the rainbow ♪ ♪ ♪ way up high ♪ ♪ ♪ There's a land ♪ that I heard of ♪ ♪ once in a lullaby ♪ ♪ ♪ Somewhere ♪ ♪ over the rainbow ♪ John> I come up here every morning at ten, open up.

And I fix some tea.

Put my cups and everything out.

And I, mark the people down as they come in the door.

<I know you're hungry.> [indiscernible chatter] If anything happens... ...ask them to leave.

If they don't ask them, then I will have to ask them "please leave and do not come back."

If they do not leave when we ask them to we go dial 9-1-1.

Eudora> My name is Eudora and I've been in the shelter, six months.

I came here because I had cancer.

And I came to have surgery.

And I didn't go home because I, was living with a man that was an alcoholic.

And I just decided I wasn't going to get well.

I think that's why I'm really happy that I had my artwork to fall back on.

My self-image has really improved since I had that, and.

I had the love of a lot of people.

[Becky singing] Leonard> And myself... I feel, embarrassed being in this position but it's the only way I have to survive.

You know, a lot of people think... "So and so, stay in the shelter.

So and so, do this."

That's the only way I can make it.

Because I've been pretty sick.

I'm not sick now.

Not all the way down, but I have family problems.

And that's very hurtin' when you have to depart from your family after 28 years.

I have six children and, eight grandchildren, and, they don't look down at me.

I'm just glad I was able to survive through it, you know.

It's a hurtin' feeling we are hurtin' being out here like this.

People that's, riding by and looking by should be careful how they talk, very careful.

Because you never know what the future holds.

Visitor> The little bit of income I have coming in is only, it's the only income.

And, like, right now, we're living day by day, financially.

Day to day, it's not paycheck to paycheck it's day to day, right now.

And, it's hard being a single parent It's hard enough and I know people that have their home, their two-car garage, they know it's hard enough being a two-income family.

So they could imagine what it's like being, you know, a single parent.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Volunteer> In the kitchen situation, you have volunteers that come from every walk of life.

From the most brilliant to the, you know, least educated person.

From old people to young.

You have rich people and poor people.

You have every type person.

And then the same thing within your guests.

You have every level and type and every mental, physical problem.

And they all come together for a certain number of hours.

In this one place.

And they all have to get along.

And it's, a building of community.

It's a creating a community among people.

And I like to think of it, it's a like a microcosm of the whole world, you know.

That where somehow or other you have hope that if it can work in that one place it could work in the world.

♪ Happy Birthday ♪ to you ♪ ♪ Happy Birthday to you ♪ ♪ Happy Birthday ♪ dear... ♪ ♪ Happy Birthday to you ♪ ♪ How old are you ♪ <Twenty-six> Anne> When I came to work back in 78, I was doing pretty good.

I had my own place and a nice job.

Everything was fine.

So I was going out because I was worried about the guys I knew them.

So I wanted to help them.

I had no idea in 1978 that by 1982 where I'd end up broke, both cars gone, my health bad and on the street myself.

I tell people about some of the places I've slept in, on the porches and in the cars.

It's kind of hard for me to talk about it.

<That's okay.> But, I'll lived through it.

<Thank God.> Now I have my own place again.

And so I'm getting started again.

But I still believe, that had not I understood those people I would never have been able to get through this.

<Thank God.> So sometimes you do things cause you want to help other people.

The homeless situation, it's not something that people choose.

It can happen in a split second.

<That's right.> It can happen to anybody.

<That's right.> It doesn't happen to the guys who stand around drinking all day.

It happens when you're up on your feet, and all of a sudden... kaboom, something happens and everything's gone.

I'm just grateful that it's... Cause I ended up eating out of the soup kitchen.

The very thing that I started.

I said "Lord, I sure didn't mean to build this place for me."

[laughter] Leonard> Her name was Anne Young, and I knew her very well.

She put in a lot of volunteer time.

She was a very talented person.

She was the backbone of that kitchen.

John> Seem like we get more and more people coming up here than... we did over to the old kitchen.

The old kitchen on Rosemary Street.

Me and Leonard run the old kitchen.

He was the assistant and I was the manager.

Dwayne> My mom died last year in September.

My father still living.

[indiscernible voice off camera] Not to, well, not as often as I want to, you know, because I'm always busy.

And I'll say he's always busy.

We never did anything together, you know, like the father and son thing, you know.

Like going on, picnics and stuff, you know.

We never... He was... a very nice guy.

You know, a very nice guy.

Visitor> I mean, we're all people but my situation is not like theirs.

And theirs isn't, like, you know each other's.

And each one has an individual situation that caused them to be here, you know.

♪ ♪ ♪ Leonard> Well, they would always have a Christmas party.

And always have mounds and mounds of presents.

[indiscernible talking] Ty> I'm known locally as Ty.

That's my nickname.

And I have, a long name.

Jataadhar, which means, the number one sheik for North America.

Bhupinder, which is master of the universe is my first name- Bhupinder.

Singh is my family name.

Toofan is my spiritual name.

And Nehung means sort of a... a monster of a character.

[laughter] They're talking about moving the kitchen now, and, the people downtown are afraid.

They're afraid of the unknown.

And they're afraid of these people because, these people are the unwanted people.

These people don't exist in the American society.

And, if you don't exist in this society, if you're not really part of it, more or less, then... people are really afraid, you know.

And that fear, keeps them from helping anybody else.

Visitor> I have seen hard times where I actually did- It was before I, you know, could come up here.

Meaning I didn't have transportation location, you know, a place I lived.

I couldn't get here to eat here or to bring the kid.

But I've seen times then when I actually went from door to door to my neighbors and asked for canned foods or whatever they could spare so I could feed my family.

And, if it wasn't for my children I wouldn't have done it, because of the pride factor.

Ty> I camp in the woods.

It's nice to occasionally meet a deer or something like that.

But I like staying in the woods.

It's much better than the city.

There's a story from my master that he wants- He always liked to stay with the poor people.

He didn't like to stay with rich people.

This rich guy brought my master a piece of fine bread.

And my master took a piece of bread from a poor man and a rich man's bread.

And when he squeezed the rich man's bread, blood flowed from his hand.

And when he squeezed the, the poor man's bread, milk flowed from it.

Visitor 2> I started working here, and I had the idea to have a church service here for the guys, and they could come and drink coffee, perhaps after church, have a meal.

Because we don't have a Sunday morning meal.

So, we just have a nice service on Sunday morning.

We drink coffee while, during the service.

It helps to keep the guys awoke too.

Because a lot of times we get up at 5:00 in the morning.

♪ [small choir singing] Volunteer> You look at the deepest, darkest parts of yourself and you confront what you fear the most, that you could be.

The circumstances of my life are such that I have had enough money not to be put in that position.

But I still have those same kinds of hang ups, and the same kinds of problems and the same kinds of fears.

It's just that I can cover them up better and hide them better.

[church singing continues] ♪ Visitor 3> I used to dream about violence and destruction of the world, that sort of thing.

Ever since I got the Lord, I've got good dreams of being a preacher in a tent, preaching in front of millions of people.

And eventually everybody knows about it.

And world peace has come in.

And I ain't going to do it without Lord's permission.

I'm just waiting for that day to happen.

Becky> My name is Becky Cantrell, I live in Chapel Hill.

And went to school at Lincoln High.

I also went to school at... college Brooklyn, New York, and Durham Tech.

Leonard> She's on some very heavy medication,very heavy.

And I feel like she shouldn't be on it, but her doctor tells her otherwise.

Becky> So I have two children.

Voice off camera> Where are they?

Becky> I got a daughter, 21 years old just graduated from the University of Chapel Hill.

I got a little boy, he's nine and a half.

[indiscernible] And... I just did make it- My children... never grew up in adoption.

But I just couldn't make it with them in adoption.

I don't know what I've done if I hadn't took care of my own children.

Thank you for the world so sweet.

Thank you for the food we eat.

Thank you for the birds that sing.

Thank you God for everything.

Amen.

Visitor 4> I got three boys, and I'm gonna raise all three of them by myself.

My mama worked and she had nine children and she schooled by herself.

With all nine of her kids.

And she worked and she worked until all of us got grown.

And I'm gonna do the same with my three.

I ain't going to stop until I get where I'm going.

Leonard> I have a distant cousin.

I had asked her the same day I left home.

"I asked her would it be alright if I parked in her driveway and sleep in my car?"

And she said, "Sure."

You know.

And that's where I slept in my car.

You know, we all have our pride, you know, and I just, I didn't really, didn't know which way to turn.

It's not running right now.

It needs a little work done on in it now.

It's time I got it.

It had a lot of mileage on it and I knew that, but I knew I wouldn't be going too far, you know.

First thing they gonna ask for, is a cup of coffee.

Takes 30 to 45 minutes to make it.

I try to start the water boiling quickly cause when it's hard, cold weather really hard, cold weather.

It's like a dose of medicine, a cup of coffee.

And I have to admit, everybody wonder why Leonard makes such good coffee.

I got a lot of secrets.

Everybody doesn't know there, but Leonard knows.

Everybody tells me, I don't look like a homeless person.

You know, I don't know how I look, but I am a homeless person.

But it happened to me, you know, it can happen to the, the richest person in the world can be cut down like a honeysuckle.

Make you feel like crying sometimes.

Breaking down, crying when you find that you out here like this.

Nobody to call on.

You know, I sit out there in my car a lot now and think about it.

I said, you know, if I get sick, you know, I don't know if my ex-wife will see after me, My children... I don't think they'd turn their back to me as a whole.

But I think about it, you know.

Reverend> John Caldwell, who is a worker at the Community Kitchen, is a member of this church.

And he comes from a long line of religious people who were members of this church.

At one time, it was known as a Caldwell church because so many of the Caldwells held positions of responsibility.

When I was presented by John Caldwell's father, Sam Caldwell, I was accepted as a pastor of this church because when Sam Caldwell said, "You were okay."

You were okay.

When it comes to food, when it comes to, cleaning, when it comes to fixing up things- John's hands, he has big hands anyway, and he has a big heart along with those big hands.

And he was very much available to lend a helping hand, to give support, to help move things around and help keep things in place.

And John Caldwell, is that man.

[phone ringing] John> Telephone, Terry.

♪ Adeste Fideles ♪ ♪ laeti triumphantes ♪ ♪ Venite ♪ ♪ Venite ♪ ♪ in Bethlehem ♪ Ty> The most important place in any town, any place in the world that I've always been has been the free kitchens, the free places.

Because that's where the people that really count hang out.

Leonard> Having a new kitchen and shelter is just fantastic, really.

I mean, it's a facility that we can, help more people to become independent.

And get out faster even.

John> Oh, Lord!

Ooh, don't it look nice?

Beautiful.

Leonard> You got four eyes there, and you also have something like a cookout thing.

You can cook a great big pot of stuff.

So you got really six or seven cooking spaces here.

John> Wow, it's nice.

Leonard> You know, move this move that, move this- It's all ready here, once you get it here.

John> It's all right here.

It is fantastic.

It's gonna be better, when we move in here.

♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ Eudora> I saw myself sleeping on the floor and, I thought, the food was going to be awful.

I came to this place and they had an elevator, and they had great food.

We had terrific lunches and all kinds of terrific homemade cookies.

And all these wonderful people that came in and... really cared.

Leonard> When you don't have nowhere to go, you just don't, you know, cold weather hits you- It's hard.

I didn't want to go on the inside.

I stayed out there to the tail end, you know.

I didn't want to go.

I've heard so many stories about, you know, people in the shelter, they just got released from prison, they got bad attitudes and this and that.

People from mental institutions coming in.

You have to accept all that because I have seen it that they under the social service.

And if you can't... you just have to bear with it.

Come on here, boy.

<What> Look at here.

John> I'm going to take a shower now.

<All right> I can stand right here with that thing... [imitating spraying sounds] Take me a shower.

This is nice.

Leonard> It's a lot of room.

John> Ain't it though.

♪ ♪ Volunteer> Nice, nice.

I wish I had this at home.

Leonard> Most of the food is donated to the kitchen.

That's what keeps us going, donation.

This is a... college town and very professional people and very well-to-do people.

And as a whole, they want to share their wealth.

And they the one that keep the kitchen going.

They volunteer their time.

Sometimes people are not open-minded enough to to support the homeless people.

But the greater percentage of them do.

Ty> The people here are the throwaway of the society.

So the food is, here, the throwaway of the society.

But the, most groups of people that come here and prepare food, they make it with great love.

So... the food tastes like that.

> You were a regular here?

But while you were serving, you look like you knew what you were doing.

[indiscernible chatter] Volunteer> I kind of feel like I'm in a dream.

I'm dreaming on it.

[indiscernible chatter] > Are you a volunteer, today?

Visitor 5> I couldn't see really any bad thing about this, this place.

I couldn't, nah.

Like you said, if it wasn't here, you might not be eating too good.

Visitor 6> Or I might not, or I might be buried somewhere.

♪ Living from day to day ♪ ♪ ♪ There's no other way ♪ ♪ ♪ Looking from face to face ♪ ♪ ♪ Hoping for love today ♪ ♪ I guess a dream ♪ ♪ from dream to dream ♪ ♪ [indiscernible chatter] > Did Art build those?

> Yep he built these two weekends ago.

Reporter> Mike, I want to get a picture of... ...because we are going to try to do a feature story.

Leonard> There's no telling what they would do to... get something to eat, you know.

Most of them realize that this is a college town.

They're not, they're not dumb, you know.

But the thing about it... they just, they just caught in the air, you know.

There's some talented people in this program.

You don't know it, but I know it.

There's some talented people, but they they're not going to be discovered at the soup kitchen.

Some of them have alcohol problems.

Some of them have mental problem.

But they are... they're really talented people.

[indiscernible chatter] Let's give a big hand for everybody here.

[applause] John> Seem like the kitchen just... expanded.

Becky> Thanks for the world so sweet.

Thanks for the food we eat.

Thanks for the birds that sing.

Thanks God for everything.

We thank you God for the new soup kitchen and bless everybody in the world.

Amen.

♪ Wandering ♪ ♪ in my soul ♪ ♪ ♪ Where it stops ♪ nobody knows ♪ John> It comes up here.

Sit around, laugh and talk.

well, enjoy yourself for now and I hope they have a nice day for me.

♪ Where it stops ♪ ♪ nobody knows where ♪ ♪ Sometimes it's hard to tell ♪ ♪ what is and isn't there ♪ ♪ It just occurred to me ♪ ♪ I haven't got in anywhere ♪ ♪ Here ♪ just wandering ♪ in my soul ♪ Where it stops ♪ ♪ nobody knows where ♪ ♪ ♪ I'll be wandering ♪ ♪ ♪ in my soul ♪ ♪ ♪ Where it stops ♪ ♪ nobody knows where ♪ ♪ ♪ How many times have I ♪ ♪ ♪ end up falling ♪ ♪ And how many times have you ♪ ♪ ♪ heard me calling ♪ ♪ ♪ This is the last time that ♪ ♪ ♪ I will be... ♪ ♪ Wandering ♪ ♪ in my soul ♪ ♪ ♪ Where it stops ♪ ♪ nobody knows where ♪ ♪ ♪ And I'll keep wandering ♪ ♪ ♪ in my soul ♪ ♪