Posted on 02/25/2005 6:41:03 AM PST by Chris Haire
Group claims business preys upon the unfortunate and the addicted
(Knight-Rider) Phenix City, Ala. -- The cafeteria of Suzy's Soup Kitchen in downtown Phenix City has been packed to the rafters, day in and day out, with hundreds of the area's downtrodden and needy.
And while the soup kitchen receives no funding from civic, state, or federal organizations, Suzy's is able to feed them without pause. In fact, Suzy's has never had to turn away an unfortunate for lack of food, nor has it ever denied an individual subsequent servings. As the sign above the entrance to Suzy's says, "Come in, and you will be feed. Leave, and you will be full."
But despite Suzy's efforts to win the war on hunger, the soup kitchen is drawing criticism from many of the area's leading charity organizations and homeless advocacy groups for its controversial approach to funding.
What critics want you to know is that there are two sides to Suzy's. On one side, there is the soup kitchen. On the other, a liquor store. It’s name - Sousey Sue’s.
"It's a disgrace," says Cate Watershed, a member of Phenix City Families Against Famine. "The people behind this store don’t care about the homeless. They don’t care about the unfortunate. All they care about is making a profit, and they are willing to do it at the expense of society’s most needy."
Not so, says the proprietor of the Suzy's Soup Kitchen, Marshall Field. "The homeless are people too. They have the same wants and needs that you and I have. They want food - which I give them for free. They also want to have a little fun, a little nip here and there. And we happily oblige."
According to Erma Preston, chairperson for Concerned Citizens of Phenix City, Suzy’s Soup Kitchen goes against the very nature of charity. "We are supposed to be helping these people," Preston says, "not adding to their misery."
Dr. Lewis Queensberg, a specialist in addiction at the University of Alabama-Birmingham, agrees. "Many of these individuals are where they are today, dependent on soup kitchens for their survival, because of their addictions to alcohol. This so-called soup kitchen only contributes to their destructive tendencies. Mr. Field is the very definition of an enabler."
Queensberg adds, "By offering addicts a free meal and then asking for their dollar at the liquor store next door is the same as giving a person an aspirin for a headache and then hitting them over the head with a mallet. What kind of help is that?"
Field disagrees, stating that he is lending a hand to society’s most needy. "There are several questions that need to be answered here. One, am I making a profit? The answer is 'no.' All money that Sousey Sue’s generates is used to fund Suzy's Kitchen, after we cover payroll and our overhead costs, of course," Field says. "And two, do these folks leave hungry? Are their bellies not full? Once again, the answer is 'no.'”
The businessman believes that the people who work for groups like Phenix City Families Against Famine aren’t doing their part to help the unfortunate. "These people only care about the homeless and the poor when it doesn't interfere with their brunches and their gala balls. Where are the men and women behind these so-called charity organizations when the sun goes down? At home sipping Scotch and feigning interest in PBS,"
Field says. "I know what the homeless want, and I give it to them, in one convenient place, all day and all night. At Suzy's and Sousey’s, we don't abandon anybody. Not even the rich."
According to Erma Preston, Concerned Citizens of Phenix City will begin hosting weekly protests at the soup kitchen while a march is being planned for later in the month.
Field also says that if Suzy's Soup Kitchen continues to be a success in Phenix City, he will open locations in other cities.
Chris Haire www.freetheseed.com
No, no, no! We can't have an ENTREPRENEUR doing a better job with feeding the homeless than a BUREAUCRAT! GASP!
Great idea. A nice little, safe and secure flop-house next door and no one is homeless nor hungry anymore. Great idea.
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