'They've done a lot of good'
Terry Hannon mops the floor after the final meal at the Cherished Ones Ministries soup kitchen on Saturday night.
BILL BULEY/Press
Volunteers, from left, Amy Ankley, Carla Leach and Ellen Taggart prepare meals during Saturday's last soup kitchen run by Cherished Ones Ministries.
Dean Berkness sweeps and others clean up following Saturday night's soup kitchen operated by Cherished Ones Ministries.
COEUR d’ALENE — The dinner crowd was gone and it was cleanup time.
That’s when Terry Hannon grabbed a mop Saturday night. He swung it back and forth, taking small steps as he went.
The 92-year-old stopped and glanced around. This would be his last time cleaning the floor at 401 N. Second.
After more than two decades, the soup kitchen operated by Cherished Ones Ministries was closed. Hannon, a trustee of about 10 years for the nonprofit, believes it made a difference.
“We can always hope for the best. You plant a seed and you just wait for it. You don’t know what happens until it grows up,” he said.
Cherished Ones lost its longtime soup kitchen home when the property owners said they had other plans for the building.
About 50 people stopped in for what was billed as “The Last Supper.”
It was a meal fit for a king: ham, chicken, vegetables, salad and dessert.
People sat and chatted while enjoying a final feast. One by one, they filtered in and out, stopping for a hugs and goodbyes, eventually leaving just Director Kevin Kram, some of the original founding board members and volunteers.
The decorations of fishes and loaves, crosses and signs about Jesus were coming down.
Kram said he came in early and reflected on all the people who had come and gone over the years. He thought about the conversations and the feeling they had shared and the hard times some had survived.
He saw a lot of changes for the better. The soup kitchen was a project of passion, a desire to help those in need.
It did that well, Kram said, with limited funds, but limitless hearts to help.
“It’s pretty amazing,” he said.
Dorothy Spouse, a founding board member, said she saw a lot of good happen.
“God opened a lot of doors," Spouse said.
Darla Trinkaus, another founding board member, said she received more than she gave.
“I learned things about life and how blessed I truly was,” she said. “These people were here with me when I was down. They’ve all been like a family."
Her sister, Deena Cox, was also a founding board member.
“We did it because that’s what God called us to do. Feed his children,” she said.
Dean Berkness was pushing a broom around the dining room, as he often did after dinner.
He, too, has received and given.
“I just like to help out. Sometimes, they’re real short handed," he said.
Cherished Ones helped a lot of people, Berkness said.
“They helped me” he said. “They’ve done a lot of good.”
