From left: Mary Cassesso, Brendan Webb, Timely Johnson, and Reverend Jordan Harris host the Come to the Table Community Meal in Somerville, MA, Nov. 12, 2025. — Photo by Christopher Morris. Copyright 2025 Christopher Morris

 By C. Scott Morris

They didn’t miss a week.

When the Come to the Table Community Meal almost faltered last year, Connexion took it over, finding new ways to fund and enhance the East Somerville-based program.

Now the program is fully funded for another year thanks to $50,000 from the City of Somerville’s Community Benefits Stabilization Fund.

Mayor Katjana Ballantyne announced the decision on Nov. 17, directing nearly a million dollars to address food insecurity, according to a press release. The city made the decision in response to SNAP changes and diminishing funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, which sustained the Come to the Table Community Meal during the pandemic.

The city’s support means a lot to the Rev. Jordan Harris of Connexion, who leads the community meal program.

“I think it means that the work that we’re doing matters. It means that people are paying attention. The city is paying attention. We are helping to fill a gap that exists for a lot of folks in the city of Somerville.”

Come to the Table Community Meal is the only restaurant-catered, hot community meal in East Somerville served free of charge, and it is held every Wednesday, from 5 to 6 p.m., except during some holidays.

In the program, Connexion buys meals from local restaurants, helping to support them, and then serves those meals at 149 Broadway, providing both dine-in and take-out options.

Since Connexion took over the meal, weekly attendance has grown drastically, prompting leaders to consider how to continue the meal without running out of food, a problem that is becoming more frequent.

Increasing Demand

During their first month, in October 2024, Connexion served an average of 63 meals a week. One year after that, they served an average of 116 meals, which is nearly an 85% increase. Currently, their record for the most meals served in a single night took place on October 15 of this year, when they served 130 meals.

Gus Minter, the manager of Project SOUP, said he also noticed record-breaking changes this month at his organization.

On Wednesday, November 24, 2024, Project SOUP served 56 people, and exactly one year later, he said, they served 160 people.

“So demand for the same day and the same month has nearly tripled in one year,” he said. “It was our biggest day ever today.”

Demand for services at Project SOUP, he said, increased by over 20% every month this year, compared to the same months in 2024. Apart from delayed SNAP payments, he added that he thinks one major factor driving the growing demand for these programs is the cost of living.

Year over year, food prices in the Boston area increased by 3.3%, and the cost of rent rose by 5.2% since July 2024, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Jera, who has been coming to the meal for over a year, said that people hear about the program more often through conversations than through online platforms or advertising.

Word is spreading that the meal is a great place, not just for food, but also for camaraderie, he said, attributing some of the growth to their improving reputation as a safe, nonjudgmental place.

“Some nights, I’m not going to lie, I come here for the community,” he said. “And if you’re hungry, they got you. And because of everything that is going on right now [with SNAP delays], a lot of us are going without incomes that we had, so this is very beneficial.”

Wrap-around Services

In addition to food, Connexion offers donated clothes and hygiene products, and a nurse from the Cambridge Health Alliance stops by to check on visitors once a month.

“We try to make it like a multi-service center, a one-stop shop of things going on,” said long-time volunteer, Mary Cassesso. “We have more integration of services,” she said, compared to other programs.

Free clothes hanging in the Connexion Closet in Somerville, MA, on Nov. 12, 2025. — Photo by Christopher Morris. Copyright 2025 Christopher Morris

When Connexion took over the meal in 2024, they ran into a logistical challenge: making over 50 meals in a single night.

“There was a couple of weeks where we had access to a large quantity of frozen meals,” said Harris. “So we had, maybe, six microwaves going in different parts of the church building because we didn’t want to blow any circuits. We were heating up meals for folks in the microwaves and sending folks home with frozen meals.”

After the first night of large-scale microwaving, Harris said, they started looking for a better, more efficient way to operate.

Developing A New Model

“We knew that we wanted to do something that was different in terms of catering the meals, just to sort of pour back into the local economy,” said Connexion Food Justice Advocate, Reverend Christy Wright. “But we weren’t quite sure yet how we were going to do it.”

Lindsay Allen, the executive director of East Somerville Main Streets, said that she worked with Harris to develop a new program, one that contributed to the local economy.

“Jordan and I tried to brainstorm a business model that would both support these businesses, who are already helping this community, and also live out the mission of the meal,” she said, adding that many local businesses already give out free meals to people in need throughout the week.

“We looked to the restaurants as caterers,” Harris said, “and that’s the model we’ve been following ever since.”

Currently, Connexion purchases from four different nearby restaurants, and on every fifth Wednesday, they buy food from Vinny’s, a local Italian restaurant.

Ricón Mexicano sits three blocks away from Connexion on Broadway in Somerville, MA, on Nov. 12, 2025. — Photo by Christopher Morris. Copyright 2025 Christopher Morris

Since Connexion first implemented the new model, they have purchased 14 meals from Rei Da Picanha, 11 meals from Lotus Xpress, eight meals from Ricón Mexicano, and two meals from Vinny’s.

Once a month, Project SOUP still pays for a meal, and this November, they purchased it from Sister’s Caribbean, a restaurant located only four blocks away from Connexion.

The Somerville High School Culinary Arts Program occasionally contributes a meal as well. This fall, they donated 120 handmade chicken pot pies.

Looking to the Future

However, the $50,000 given to the meal program is not a recurring payment, according to Harris.

“At some point next year, I’ll have to begin to think about 2027 and to think about what sustainability as a whole looks like,” he said. “You know, we will still need help. Wednesdays will still keep coming, and so if folks are still interested in volunteering or donating, this is a new permanent thing, hopefully.”

Donors can contribute to the Come to the Table Community Meal by using Connexion’s Givebutter account.

To get involved, volunteers can reach out to Harris at Pastor@connexionumc.org or drop by Connexion on Wednesday at 4 p.m.