The Beginning of Suffolk Christian Fellowship Center

A product of what was once a restaurant turned soup kitchen, SCFC was formed to meet the needs of the homeless and low-income families in need of a hot meal. Ralph and Lorna Slaughter, founders of the organization, incorporated the philosophy of charity into their way of life in the early stages of their marriage. Using their own funding plus donations from family, friends, and coworkers, they began feeding homeless and low-income families in 2002.

“The initial goal of the organization was just to "Lend a Helping Hand" to those experiencing hardships by feeding them with nutritious food, ministerial & counseling services, as well as clothing and household items as they became available. It became very apparent that in order to really meet the need we would have to break down some of the barriers of uncertainty many would come in with, so we maintained our efforts to establish rapport with each of the participants to diminish these perceptions. Our initial program began with the hosting of a Soup Kitchen that we held every Sunday. We chose to do this on a Sunday because traditionally this is the day when family and friends gather together to fellowship with one another. We believe in this tradition and therefore maintained this day to give those who did not have family or friends an opportunity to fellowship with us. Having the opportunity to meet people of all ages and walks of life we were able to determine this one truth: For many people the belief about hunger is that it is confined to specific pockets of society, certain areas of the country or certain neighborhoods, but the reality is they are our military families, working class, your neighbors, your family & friends. This experience has helped us realize and base our efforts on this one principal, although we are diverse in many ways; our basic needs are all the same.”