Elijah’s Promise Works to Harness the Power of Food to Break the Cycle of Poverty

Since 1989, Elijah’s Promise has worked to “harness the power of food to break the cycle of poverty, alleviate hunger, and change lives.” The Community Soup Kitchen in New Brunswick is the heart of Elijah’s Promise, and their food truck furthers their outreach.

Dubbed as “EP on Wheels,” the mobile meal program began in June 2022 and now serves eight designated venues across North and East Brunswick, five of which are low-income senior citizen locations. On average, the vehicle serves 4,000 meals per month.

The truck has been key to meeting an ever-increasing need. In April 2023, the organization served over 35,000 meals in total, nearly a five-fold increase from the 7,500 meals served during the same month in 2018.

“We are serving over 34,000 free meals a month while seeing record breaking numbers of food insecurity in our community,” says Executive Director Michelle Wilson. “This includes a large increase in low-income seniors and families using our services for the first time. Unfortunately, with inflation and rising food costs, combined with cuts to pandemic-related programs, we expect this tremendous need to continue.” She notes that the organization’s ability to meet the need is made possible by “the generous support for our emergency feeding programs, including EP on Wheels.”

The food being given out by EP on Wheels is not only free, but is also nutritious, delicious, and prepared by chefs and trained emergency meal staff. The meals are freshly cooked and plated in the morning at the Culinary School and on-site soup kitchen, then delivered to their respective locations. EP on Wheels has also partnered with Make A Wish, Central Jersey Diaper Pantry, and the North Brunswick Police’s Adopt a Family Program to create community outreach programs, especially in times of need, such as during Hurricane Ida, and for holidays, such as Christmas.

Elijah’s Promise Community Kitchen & Social Services
18 Neilson St.,
New Brunswick
732.545.9002

• To volunteer or donate visit elijahspromise.org