Keeseville Good Shepherd Church of the Nazarene has found that the best way to meet its community’s needs is by providing meals through the Keeseville Hope Kitchen.

The Keeseville Hope Kitchen is a three-pronged local church ministry that operates under the mission of: eat, educate, empower. 

Hope Kitchen invites the community for a community meal every Friday. The Hope Kitchen then educate the community through breadmaking, cooking, and food sustainability classes by partnering with experts, and local restaurants and organizations. The ministry also empowers its community and local businesses by allowing local food trucks, caterers, and others to rent the kitchen space to prep food.

Pastor Noelle Eichenberger and her husband, Benjamin, began pastoring at Keeseville Good Shepherd in 2020, less than a month before the true onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Ben and Noelle had food industry experience before they began in ministry; Ben was a chef, and Noelle was on the front of the house and hospitality side.

Noelle said she and Ben would talk about how it felt like the churches had a massive opportunity to feed people that wasn't being fulfilled. Six weeks after arriving at Keeseville Good Shepherd, the onset of the pandemic tabled any thoughts of utilizing the church kitchen. That was until a conversation with a congregation member named Beth.
"She said, 'I think we should do community suppers,'" Noelle recalled. "And I said, 'Okay, what would this look like?'"

Keeseville, New York, is located in the state's northeast corner, closer to Montreal, Canada, than New York City. Many in the community struggle with poverty and drug addiction.

"There are two old roadside motels, and that's what they use for low-income housing," Noelle said. "They don't have a kitchen. They might have a door-sized fridge, a microwave, and a hot plate."

Organic farms, an artisan butcher, and a creamery surround the town of 3,000. However, due to poverty, no one has access to that food.

"So, there's not good access to fresh, local, or healthy food," Noelle said. "We just got a grocery store in our town." 

Fast forward to 2023, and the church received a missional grant through the Upstate New York District to create a kitchen space that could feed, educate, and empower those in the community. 

Partners in the church stepped up to help with contracting and construction work. Connections were formed in the community as local farms and businesses got on board with donations or cost-effective pricing on equipment.

After remodeling the kitchen, refreshing the fellowship hall, and getting the necessary food service permits from the county health department, Keeseville Hope Kitchen officially opened in November 2024.

Noelle estimates 100 people are served each week. Local food vendors have begun to rent the kitchen to prep for food service, and they've been offering food sustainability and breadmaking classes.

Keeseville Good Shepherd has built relationships with the community through the kitchen, including with residents who did not initially feel comfortable attending a church service. 

Noelle likens the kitchen to a partnership between the church, God's prevenient grace, and the Holy Spirit's transformational power. She noted that Jesus never made the "sinner's prayer" a barrier to a miracle that brought about flourishing in someone's life.

She feels the church can start by simply offering to meet a basic need.

“For the Church, it’s about being able to share the love of Christ and to meet a basic need,” Noelle said. "It's really hard to share the gospel with someone when they're worried about where their next meal is going to come from."