Providing weekly food services for those in need in our community has been a cornerstone outreach mission of St. Timothy's Episcopal Church for decades. We have endeavored to follow the teachings of Jesus when he instructed his followers to feed those who are hungry. We serve our neighbors in need every Tuesday afternoon, but the work to make that happen occurs
throughout the week.

Our Outreach program has had to increase the amount of food provided due to the rise of food insecurity as a direct result of the Covid pandemic. For example, when Lauralee Kawamata started managing the program on July 5, 2022, we served 16 people and obtained 300 lbs. of food from Hawaii Foodbank. On February 27, 2024, we served 105 meals, and our food bags reached 164 mouths. We obtained over 1,000 lbs. of food that week. The number of people and families served continues to increase.

Outreach needs more dedicated volunteers to food shop at the Foodbank, load and unload crates and boxes of food, stock our food pantry, bag the groceries, distribute groceries, cook meals twice a month, report to Foodbank weekly, monthly, bimonthly, and annually. We especially could use the help of those who can lift and load items quickly and efficiently, as well as those who can help distribute the food along the line. We try our very best to keep lines moving so we can serve all those who come for food. In short, this ministry requires a lot of hard work and can be strenuous—and yet it is deeply fulfilling to serve our neighbors in need. 

St. Timothy's Outreach Team has provided food service to the community for over 35 years. An Episcopal priest, Claude DuTeil from St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in Wahiawa, first started feeding those in need over 60 years ago. That was dubbed the "Peanut Butter Ministry" because he used a jar of peanut butter, bread, and instant coffee when he started. He was a passionate advocate for the needy and worked tirelessly to organize and begin what is known as IHS, the Institute of Human Services. Located in Iwilei, today IHS is the largest and oldest emergency shelter on O'ahu.

The founders of St. Timothy's fed countless people at Blaisdell Park for decades. Outreach was relocated to the church campus some years ago at the state’s request.

Please send a text to Lauralee Kawamata at or the church office if you would like to assist in this important outreach ministry in any way. ​

Our Outreach Team prepares supplemental food bags every Sunday morning for distribution the following Tuesday. 
​Photo by Fr. Pete Wallace.