Who we are

The Ministry of Caring is a vibrant community of staff, volunteers, donors, and diverse supporters united by a passion to serve the poor. Together, we gladly give of ourselves to fulfill the vision of our founder and executive director, Brother Ronald Giannone, OFM Cap., “the poor should never be treated poorly.”

To learn more about us, click here >> Who we are

EMMANUEL DINING ROOM EAST SEEKS NEW LOCATION

A letter to the community from Ministry of Caring Founder & Executive Director Brother Ronald Giannone, OFM Cap.

I want to begin by thanking you, the community, for supporting Emmanuel Dining Room East. Your contribution to the mission of The Ministry of Caring is inspiring and so vital, and our gratitude for your commitment to feeding the poor is boundless.  We could not do the work that we do without individuals such as you and our network of meal partners who have prepared and served meals at Emmanuel Dining Room East.

Sadly, as you may have already learned, The Ministry of Caring had to close Emmanuel Dining Room East as of February 28, 2025. We did this with great pain and regret after significant efforts to keep Emmanuel Dining Room East in operation.  Unfortunately, the operational deficit has both persisted and grown over recent years, making the operations of the facility increasingly unfeasible. We were forced to stop serving Sunday meals there by direction of the landlord. By the time we ceased operations, The Ministry of Caring was paying all or most costs for trash removal, water, utilities and pest control in addition to being charged rent, whereas before, the Methodist Action Program had graciously offered us the building rent-free – since 1980.  We now have the burden of paying rent, which we cannot afford. The difficulty of parking restrictions of the Wilmington Police Department have made it difficult for many committees to deliver prepared meals to the site. You can quickly understand why the site has become untenable.

While all of this is disappointing news, the Mayor of the City of Wilmington has committed to finding a new location on the East Side to replace the now closed dining room.  In the meantime, we have expanded our operating hours at Emmanuel Dining Room West to compensate for the loss of Emmanuel Dining Room East. During the cold weather months, we have also been running a shuttle bus from the Emmanuel Dining Room East to Emmanuel Dining Room West during mealtimes for the elderly and disabled to further assist those in need. We are doing all that we can to support the hungry on the East Side until a new site can be found and put into operation.

In the meantime, we are asking for your continued support. Between 2023 and 2024, we witnessed an 8.1% increase in the demand for meals at our Emmanuel Dining Room at its three locations, and the first few months of 2025 are showing a trend that we will outpace the demands of 2024.  Altogether, with your help, we served over 151,000 meals to the hungry of our community in 2024.

Many of you have been supporting Emmanuel Dining Room East generously since 1980. We beg you to shift your support temporarily to Emmanuel Dining Room West at 121 North Jackson Street, Wilmington, DE 19805-3670.

The poor still need you.

I bless and thank you for your incredible love and commitment throughout the past 45 years and ask you to remain with us until we have a permanent place on the East Side.

Sincerely,

Brother Ronald Gianonne, OFM Cap.
Founder and Executive Director