The First Presbyterian Church of Garland is celebrating the 10th anniversary of providing breakfast to unhoused folks in Garland. The program began March 24, 2012.
The program has undergone changes because of the pandemic. However, the mission remains the same. Before, full sit-down breakfasts of eggs, sausage and pancakes were served every Saturday. Numerous volunteers were needed to help with the cooking and cleaning. Members of Boy Scout
Troop 1989, members of the Lakeview Centennial Spanish National Honor Society as well as other students who needed volunteer hours joined forces to make it all happen. At that time, 180 plates of food were served each week.
Post-pandemic
The pandemic changed the way things were done. They now serve about 60 breakfasts in a to-go fashion. A group they call the Pandemic 10, make burritos for the Saturday morning event. Leftovers are taken to the Exxon Station at the corner of Miller Road and Saturn Road for distribution.
“Instead of sitting down and eating, we do a “Grab & Go” where our friends pick up food to go,” Annette Guerra-Renaud said. “We also have a member from First Christian Church who makes muffins EVERY Saturday to donate at our breakfast. The biggest difference between our breakfast before the pandemic and after is the lack of fellowship with our customers. We miss that the most.”
Guerra-Renaud, along with her husband Damon Renaud, head up the effort.
“But we don’t do this alone! I wanted to make a list of the people that help or have helped in the past with the breakfast and realized that it would include every member of FPC,” Guerra-Renaud said.
The group is happy to have never missed a Saturday. They even serve breakfast on Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and new year’s day.
The church also has a sack lunch ministry that gives sack lunches every day from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. from the church office.
Spinoff ministries
Two additional ministries, the Bread Ministry and Shoebox Christmas programs, have begun 
because of the Breakfast Ministry.
“Before COVID, we were receiving donated bread from a local bakery and would have it set up for breakfast so that people could come in Saturday mornings, “shop” for staples, then enjoy breakfast,” Guerrera-Renaud said. “Sadly, we have not been able to reestablish this part of the breakfast yet! We are working on getting it back!”
Shoebox Christmas began because they wanted to ensure that the children and needy adults who came for breakfast had a least one Christmas present.
“Our congregation and Troop 1989 donated shoeboxes and all the goodies to go in them. There were toiletries, school supplies, small toys, candy, socks, hats, stuffed animals, etc., Guerra-
Renaud said. ”On the Saturday before Christmas, Santa comes to the breakfast and hands out wrapped shoeboxes filled with love and lots of good stuff!
The Community Breakfast is funded by the church. However, the group is always in need of food and supply donations to stay within budget. They buy eggs, cheese, tortillas, ham or sausage, hot sauce, coffee, juice and milk weekly. As they slowly return to inside dining, they will need napkins, paper plates, paper cups, plastic forks, spoons, plastic gloves and small cups to hold the hot sauce. If you’d like to help, drop donations by First Presbyterian Church, 930 West Avenue B in downtown Garland.