As the economy sinks, homelessness continues to rise, in Northwest Arkansas. But one Fayetteville woman is attempting to fix that stat through hot meals, served with love.
Tucked behind some trees on School Avenue in Washington County, Momma Dean's Soul Food is fighting homelessness, one plate at a time. For her, feeding the homeless isn't something new, but something she learned from her own family. Momma Dean says she remembers her great-grandmother, who was a slave in Hope, Arkansas. Dean says that woman cooked for the plantation's owner, as well as her own large family.
As one of twelve children, Momma Dean says growing up in Hope wasn't fancy, but there was plenty of love, and simple, hot soul food. And because neighbors shared, Dean says nobody went hungry. But when she moved to Fayetteville in 2002 to care for her sick son, Dean says she was shocked to find homeless people scraping by in the woods, living without enough to eat. As she talks, Dean kneads dough, for fried cornbread. "We rolls it up, little ol' roll, pretty little roll."
Momma Dean's has been serving the hungry for three years now, but it isn't just for people who can pay. One of her employees, Chance Chapman, tells 5News how it began. "It started with the homeless coming in to the back door. They live in the woods, they live all around us. Today it's pouring down rain, and they're out in the woods."
And for Dean, that was unacceptable. "I just can't stand it. I never seen nobody hungry, cause where I come from, nobody let nobody go hungry, cause you raise stuff in the garden, you give folks stuff, you kill hogs, and you share around the neighborhood."
So as experts say area food banks area seeing a 40 to 50 percent rise this year in people asking for help, Momma Dean is opening her stove to the homeless. For every plate of food sold, she's giving one away to someone in need. "You don't want the scraps! So I feed them what I eat! They need more than just sandwiches and stuff. They need something hot. A big ol' pot of pinto beans and soup and chicken." Chapman says they do this without an ulterior motive. "There are people out there, we want to talk to them, we want to love them. Food is a great way to do it, and hopefully, in turn, we can help them out."
And Momma Dean's doesn't care if this means a puny profit. "Dump all the extra flour off of it for it to be real good and crispy. I got love for people; I don't want nobody to be hungry. When you walk in, you know you're welcome, and you know you're loved, so that makes a whole lot of difference. A whole lot, don't you think so?"
Momma Dean says whether people are homeless or not, it's a lot of hard work cooking all the food. But she says if it means bringing happiness to someone in need, it's all worth it. Momma Dean employees say with so many to feed in a bad economy, they're opening a non-profit, to make ends meet. They're launching their new effort on November 6th, at Lifesource International Food Bank, in Fayetteville.
To find out how you can help, or to follow Momma Dean's on Twitter or Facebook, log on to: www.facebook.com/mommadeans.
Tucked behind some trees on School Avenue in Washington County, Momma Dean's Soul Food is fighting homelessness, one plate at a time. For her, feeding the homeless isn't something new, but something she learned from her own family. Momma Dean says she remembers her great-grandmother, who was a slave in Hope, Arkansas. Dean says that woman cooked for the plantation's owner, as well as her own large family.
As one of twelve children, Momma Dean says growing up in Hope wasn't fancy, but there was plenty of love, and simple, hot soul food. And because neighbors shared, Dean says nobody went hungry. But when she moved to Fayetteville in 2002 to care for her sick son, Dean says she was shocked to find homeless people scraping by in the woods, living without enough to eat. As she talks, Dean kneads dough, for fried cornbread. "We rolls it up, little ol' roll, pretty little roll."
Momma Dean's has been serving the hungry for three years now, but it isn't just for people who can pay. One of her employees, Chance Chapman, tells 5News how it began. "It started with the homeless coming in to the back door. They live in the woods, they live all around us. Today it's pouring down rain, and they're out in the woods."
And for Dean, that was unacceptable. "I just can't stand it. I never seen nobody hungry, cause where I come from, nobody let nobody go hungry, cause you raise stuff in the garden, you give folks stuff, you kill hogs, and you share around the neighborhood."
So as experts say area food banks area seeing a 40 to 50 percent rise this year in people asking for help, Momma Dean is opening her stove to the homeless. For every plate of food sold, she's giving one away to someone in need. "You don't want the scraps! So I feed them what I eat! They need more than just sandwiches and stuff. They need something hot. A big ol' pot of pinto beans and soup and chicken." Chapman says they do this without an ulterior motive. "There are people out there, we want to talk to them, we want to love them. Food is a great way to do it, and hopefully, in turn, we can help them out."
And Momma Dean's doesn't care if this means a puny profit. "Dump all the extra flour off of it for it to be real good and crispy. I got love for people; I don't want nobody to be hungry. When you walk in, you know you're welcome, and you know you're loved, so that makes a whole lot of difference. A whole lot, don't you think so?"
Momma Dean says whether people are homeless or not, it's a lot of hard work cooking all the food. But she says if it means bringing happiness to someone in need, it's all worth it. Momma Dean employees say with so many to feed in a bad economy, they're opening a non-profit, to make ends meet. They're launching their new effort on November 6th, at Lifesource International Food Bank, in Fayetteville.
To find out how you can help, or to follow Momma Dean's on Twitter or Facebook, log on to: www.facebook.com/mommadeans.
