| Mercy Chefs is feeding 7,500 victims, first responders and volunteers in Louisiana’s record breaking flooding taking place now. Visit our Facebook page for the most recent updates on this emergency deployment. | Mercy Chefs is feeding 7,500 victims, first responders and volunteers in Louisiana’s record breaking flooding taking place now. Visit our Facebook page for the most recent updates on this emergency deployment. |
Principally focused on providing disaster relief, our team regularly responds to national emergencies and natural disasters at home and abroad. In addition to emergency response, we make use of our equipment skills and volunteers by meeting existing needs within urban communities, establishing permanent kitchens in places with ongoing hardship, and installing water purification systems for communities without access to potable water.
Nutritionally rich meals served in low income communities and among homeless populations within the United States.
Professionally prepared, restaurant quality meals served to victims, volunteers and first responders in national emergencies and natural disasters.
Custom built kitchens established in places with ongoing long term need operated by locals trained to staff and maintain food service for their community.
Water purification systems installed internationally in communities where access to potable water is compromised by natural disaster.
Take a look at Mercy Chefs’ latest projects. Follow where we are serving and what we are doing.
Over four trillion gallons of water fell on Louisiana in just two days, which led to a flood of historic proportions. Local reports listed 200,000 homes as damaged or destroyed and twenty parishes received Federal Disaster Declarations due to the extensive devastation. Many have labeled this disaster the worst since Superstorm Sandy.
Mercy Chefs was among the first to respond. Within 24 hours of receiving a request for aid, our team was on the ground cooking. Over the course of nine days, our team of professional chefs and volunteers contributed a total of 7,800 volunteer hours and served a total of 63,500 meals to victims and first responders. Though the emergency relief portion of our response has ended, we will continue to be a partner in the long term recovery efforts for the area.
This June’s flood in West Virginia was labeled a 1,000-year event with the Elk River cresting at a record high of 33.37 feet. Tragically twenty-three people lost their lives among the small mountain communities. Due to the rarity of flooding in the region, less than two percent of insured homes were covered in the event of a flood. Once the total damage was assessed, three counties received a Federal Disaster Declaration. The scene was overwhelming.
Mercy Chefs’ team of professional and volunteer chefs served more than 14,000 meals in the aftermath of this flood to the towns of White Sulphur Springs and Rainelle, both in Greenbrier County. Our self-sustaining mobile kitchens are able to operate without the provision of outside power or potable water. This capability proved essential for our response in West Virginia as power outages stretched through the deployment and boil advisories remained in place until our departure. The team is already planning a return this Thanksgiving to celebrate recovery.
Twice our team deployed to the greater Houston area in response to the extreme flooding that swept through the region this spring. In April we set up site at the North West Community Church in the Cyprus Creek neighborhood. Daily our chefs prepared 2,000 meals for victims, volunteers and first responders.
Just six short weeks later, our team was back on the ground to bring relief to a second round of flooding. This time in Brazoria County along the Brazos River. There we served between 1,000 and 1,400 meals daily - mainly to evacuees staying in the emergency shelters and to first responders working tirelessly to make water rescues. On both deployments Mercy Chefs partnered with the local Salvation Army to make meal deliveries to flood victims, who were unable to reach the distribution site.
After Governor John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency for Louisiana due to heavy rainfall that triggered flash flooding across the state, Mercy Chefs deployed our mobile unit, Mercy III, to Monroe. There Mercy Chefs partnered with Evangel Assembly to serve upwards of 1500 meals daily for the local community.
Our team carried out meal service in Monroe for five days totaling more than 7,500 meals. During our time there we learned that over 9,000 water rescues were performed during the flooding - an astonishing number for an area with less than 100,000 residents. Three days into the deployment we were still finding rural residents who had still not been reached with help.
For over a year now, Mercy Chefs has been partnering with three local churches in the Dallas, Fort Worth area to host a weekly homeless outreach. Even in the midst of deployments this work continues. Our church partners rotate weekly. Each congregation puts together an outdoor church service and provides volunteers for the day while Mercy Chefs prepares a home-cooked lunch for our outdoor guests.
Sadly, homelessness is on the rise in the Dallas Metroplex, and the most rapid growth within this demographic is among children. Entire families are finding themselves living on the street or in shelters with no place to go after falling on hard times. Our team is diligently working to help the local churches meet this increasing physical and spiritual need.
Disaster season began early this year with multiple tornadoes touching down in December through February. Our team provided relief to Garland, Texas, Appomattox, Virginia and LaPlace, Louisiana in the aftermath of these storms. In each scenario thousands were left without power, homes were completely destroyed and others severely damaged. Tragically multiple residents lost their lives to these powerful tornadoes.
Our responses in Virginia and Louisiana took place simultaneously. Mercy I was deployed to Appomattox and Mercy III was stationed in LaPlace. Thousands of meals were served at each location to victims, volunteers and first responders. We were able to meet and minister to many of the victims during our meal service times and on deliveries. Our team was overwhelmed by the survival stories shared with us by people whose home were destroyed but managed to survive.
Since our founding in 2006, Mercy Chefs has served over one million meals, brought aide to twenty states and seven nations with the help of over 4,200 individual volunteers.
Meals served
States served
Nations Served
Volunteers
Our team is adept at navigating the challenges created by natural disasters and emergency situations. We are prepared to respond in the most inopportune of conditions. Our self-sustainable mobile kitchens are designed to function in areas without power or clean water.
