On Sunday Mother's Day after a lunch of roti chani at Devi's corner we went shopping for some food items. We looked at their list and we decided to get 6 packets of rock sugar,6 packets sago, 12 packets of barley and 10 cans of creamed corn because they only had 10 cans. All these came up to RM66.60. Phew I wanted to buy all these with my money and not have dad or mom top it up.
So we set off on our way. We got a little lost because this place does not have a sign board so mom went out looking and finally she found it. We were actually parked in front of the cafe but because the shutters was only half open mom did not see it.
I first met Ms. Allie who is a full time volunteer at this place. I asked her a lot of questions such as what kinds of food they serve, when do they open, what sorts of people come by and how I a little girl of 8 can help.
Pit Stop Community Cafe has been opened since April and it is a place where ANYONE can get a hot meal from 5.30pm till food finishes from Wednesday to Monday. They are closed on Tuesday because they want to sleep in. You can eat as much as you can and pay whatever you can afford or if you can't pay it is o.k too. They serve about 150-160 people a day. My jaw dropped because that is a lot of people- what a big party!
Soon they will start a program called suspended meal. That means when you buy yourself a meal there you can also pay for a meal or two for someone who will use it on another day.
I also met Ms Joyce. She is the boss of the cafe. She gave me and my parents a tour of the upstairs where they conduct English and Maths classes. There are no tables or chairs. Just a few pillows and very small white board and some books for teaching. They also conduct job skill training so that these poor people can get a job and earn their own money.
Downstairs is where they do the cooking and serve the food. I found the place to be very clean. On the walls of the cafe they are posters of items that are looking for. Such as you can donate RM 9.90 for an URBAN SURVIVAL KIT that will have non woven bag,good morning towel,ziplock bag, minyak angin,plastic comb,mosquito coil, washing detergent (bar) and toilet paper.
While we were there Uncle Tony, Pak Naam were putting together some new stools. Dad helped them and they had a hard time putting together the legs of the tables but once they got the hang of it they managed to fix the other three quickly.
While they were doing that I told some jokes to Ms. Allie. I also spoke to Uncle Tony. He is at the cafe everyday helping out otherwise he says his mind will go weak. So he keeps active by helping out at the cafe from 2pm onwards. Uncle Tony is a Street Friend that means he is homeless. Uncle Tony was down on his luck and as Miss Allie explained homelessness can happen to anyone.I prefer the term Street Friends to homeless.
So if you want to know more about this place please go visit them at 101 Jalan Tun HS Lee.It is a great opportunity for you to see the cafe and to be aware of the wonderful work being done here to serve the poor and the downtrodden in our community. You can be a donar or a volunteer or stop by the cafe to have a meal and buy one for a stranger.
One of The Coporal Works of Mercy I learned at Sunday School camp is to Feed the Hungry. Don't judge the Street Friends if you come across one.Treat them as you want others to treat you.
Mom told me THANK YOU as she had the best Mothers Day ever.
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