I am being told that Welfare square has the biggest soup kitchen in the state...is that right? Also it was said that TSCC also gives food to the poor even if they are not members of the church...anybody?

http://m.sltrib.com/sltrib/mobile2/54797595-218/church-drinks-caffeine-lds.html.csp#disqus_thread

Thank you in advance!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2012 03:12PM by bignevermo.

They claim that they will help non-members...IF they have enough resources available and IF the non-member requests help through the bishop. Most of the time, they probably tell the non-member that the resources are needed for tithe-paying members...and how many non-members would even know how to set an appointment with the bishop to ask for help? As for the soup kitchen, I have no idea.

comments section how great they are with their service to non members and the poor! Thanks again!



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2012 03:12PM by bignevermo.

On my mission, the Relief Society president came to me, very upset, because a member family had been denied assistance by the branch president. This was in Eastern Europe, where it was rare for an entire family to join the church at all. They were denied any assistance because they were not full tithe-payers. The Relief Society president used her own money to help them.
Somehow, that experience makes me doubt that they would ever give assistance to non-members, though I'm sure they would tell the non-member how much they would love to help if only they had the resources to do so. And the Mormon church probably takes credit for members like the Relief Society president who help others when their church refuses to.

My spouse worked with a woman that was divorced from her TBM husband and he was in prison because he had molested their oldest daughter for years. She had been a SAHM mom and could not find a job to provide enough for the family so she ended up losing her house. She went to her ex's family for help— the brothers had gone in bizness and were doing well and they refused because she had gone to the police about the abuse. So she then went to the Bishop for help and was denied— can't recall why. In the end a very good person in her ward gave her the money and some help that she could get from family or the Church.

Years ago, shortly after my wife and I were married, she lost her job. She happened to be the main bread-winner as I was still in college at the time.

This was a huge blow to our finances and we were struggling. I figured, I'm a full tithe payer, I've never asked for anything from the church, if they could just help us out a little for a month with a bill or two, we could get back on our feet.

We went to the bishop, who we thought of as a friend, and even then we were nervous as I've ever been, I didn't like having to ask for help, but we weren't sure what else to do.

We were told, that before the church would help at all, every other avenue must be pursued first, including asking for money from family and friends, other organizations, etc before the church would help at all.

So, I had to make a phone call to my Dad, who is approaching retirement, was already helping pay for college, and were by no means well to do, let alone had piles of cash laying around. He cashed out some of his retirement to help us out, which we were grateful for.

When the Relief Society President found out we were in need, she came over with a form (she didn't check our cabinets, she was an actual friend and was struggling with the church herself) and told us to fill it out and she would take care of it. It was a request for goods from the storehouse. She was very clear to order far more than we needed because who knew how long we would need extra food and goods to get us through. So we stocked up on a lot of goods thanks to her.

So basically:
- Don't go to the church for help, even if you had already paid in thousands of dollars (remember I'd been paying tithing all my life, including my teen-aged years where I worked to save money for my mission) and were an active, worthy, temple recommend holding member of the church.
- It was more important to the church that they not give out money, than people's retirement funds.
- It's only through the independent action of a friend who happened to have some pull in the church that we were able to get some help from the church (she wasn't relief society pres for long and if I remember right she fell away from the church herself)
- A non-church member wouldn't even know to ask a bishop, let alone be able to get help from one like we had since they would be told to go ask their church first, along with any family and friend they might have. They wouldn't know a relief society pres that would be willing to risk going behind the Bishop's back for them either... I just don't see how a non-member would be even close to getting help.

The worst part of the story is that I didn't question anything during all of this. It wasn't long before my wife went inactive, and I went inactive a while after that, but I still believed! What was wrong with me???



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/31/2012 03:49PM by Finally Free!.

Darn, if I had money to fly there and check it out, I would.
I would honestly tell them I was an apostate too. I have been told I look homeless at times.
I could be caught on a camera carried by my "partner" who thought it would help Mitt with something (getting kicked, shush). It might even appear I was gay to those that might judge that way. lol


if wished were horses

Well, at least you folks HAVE a bishops storehouse/cannery!


Mississippi and West Tennessee are the areas of the country that have the highest hunger rates among both SENIORS (who have worked their entire lives) and children.


But there is not one single cannery within four hours of these hunger filled areas.


Not even members who pay tithing can get any church help when they need it, because there is no storehouse to get anything from, the wards fast offering funds are very low because the membership is among the poorest in the nation -- and the church, which COULD truck food in a few months from a regional cannery to help in the situation refuses to do a thing to help.

To make matters worse, right now scores of south Mississipians and south Louisianaians have had their homes flooded out or torn up by tornado due to Hurricane Isaac.


Even though it was a Cat 1 hurricane, in some areas it did unprecedented destruction -- even worse than Katrina -- because when it hit south Louisiana, it all but completely quit moving and instead dumped as much as 24 inches of rain in a little over 24 hours in some areas. No flood wall or levee can help an area with that -- they are designed to stop storm surge or other flood waters.


I have not been able to find out if the Slidell storehouse/cannery was one of the buildings destroyed yet. It might be, because it was built in Slidell, Louisiana.


If the Slidell storehouse/cannery has been put out of business, then there is NO cannery anywhere near any Mississipians at all. Not even down in my neck of the woods (south Mississippi), where we were able to buy stuff from the cannery that was only a couple of hours away.


We were the only area of Mississippi that had any practical storehouse/cannery coverage at all, and if the Slidell storehouse/cannery is gone now -- there is NOTHING in this region.


Can we please get the cameras rolling, so TSCC might truck a few trucks of aid down to the hurt folks in south Louisiana and south Mississippi ?????



BTW, my home is OK, all I lost was some shingles and a gash in one of my windows. My husband went down there this morning, and he and my son put up blue tarp until we can hire a roofer to fix the roof right. Better yet, I think I'm going to have power before the end of the week, meantime, I am staying in the air conditioned home of my sister in Tupelo.


So I am NOT one of those in need. But there are MANY others not so fortunate.


They could use some help from anybody -- even TSCC, if anybody can get the TV cameras down there so that they will be motivated to help.


Could Romney be blindfolded and taken one way or another down to Slidell or Plaquemines Parish, or where the dam failed at Pascagoula, Mississippi, to do a campaign stop?


Maybe THAT would get some TSCC aid down to the people who need it very badly right now.

Absolutely not.

The Mormon church "supports" the soup kitchens the Catholic church and the Salvation Army operate.

They say it's to avoid duplication of effort. Mormons hate the idea that bums might hang around the temple with their paper bags and wine, so they don't want to provide any comfort or compassionate service that might draw them to the pristine grounds of the Temple.

Anagrammy

Who gets assistance all depends on the bishop. We got assistance a few times. Only once were we told we needed to go to family for help first. We were never truned down for help with food. When I was a counselor in the RS I helped fill out food orders. I was told there was a limit on meat, which I ignored. Those instructions came from the bishop at that time, the storehouse had no limit imposed. When my husband was bishop he always provided assistance weather the person was a member, non member, tithe payer, it didn't matter, he helped them with finances and food. The bishop makes the call and some are generous and others are jerks. As for the soup kitchen, I have never heard of a soup kitchen at welfare square. I was there several years and no soup kitchen, I doubt they added one and if they had it would have been shown off in the recent PR event on TV.

I'm really curious how that would happen. How would a non-member even know that the bishop was able to distribute food? Unless it was a part-member family or something?

There were part member families, investigators, people who knew the system. Most had been helped previously and you can't live in mormon country without mormon neighbors who know how to contact the RS pres. or Bishop. The church also has what is called a Transient Bishop who works from the storehouse to help transients, homeless, people traveling through needing help. My husband sent a few people to this bishop. He was sometimes amazed how nonmembers got his number.

The Transient Bishop for people who are homeless - I never heard of that. And homeless people aren't likely to ever be able to pay much back in tithing. Good to know that LDS Inc. does at least occasionally do something genuinely charitable.

You are at the mercy of the individual Bishop and whether he wants to help you or not. I think the standard practice is to tell the member to first go to their family for help. The problem with this is that most Mormon families are already stretched to the limits, due to all the tithing and fast offerings they donate.

And if the family is unable to help, then the church may provide IF you go to 3 hours of church meetings on Sundays, and if you are taking on a church calling or job as requested. You can't be a once in a while Mormon or non Mormon and expect support from the Mormon church. And if you pay tithing on whatever small amount of income you may have.

Want to know who is my bishop. Want to know who is my Branch President. Need copies of invoice for the food I receive.Don't think I'm getting a fair deal. Worked four volunteer hours. Think someone is getting more resources than me. If I worked the hours, I should be the only person getting resources. Need for someone to check on this. Don't want to be played for a fool. Desert Industries 700 south 700 west Salt Lake city, Utah 84104

Are you saying you need some assistance? I don't know the system up there, sorry. You would be best starting a specific thread and laying out the situation.

It is a myth that "The Mormons Take Care of Their Own".

Up until a few years ago bishops would occasionally help some faithful families who fell on hard time.
But even back then it depended a lot on what their standing was in the eyes of the bishop.

Nowadays, you can pretty much forget about getting any help.
What you will get is a run-around, being sent away to ask from family and friends.

Or they tell you to go on government relief - which is truly amazing for those of us who remember when the church taught that it was a disgrace for any Mormon to do so.

Fast Offering money does not even stay in the wards anymore.
Makes you wonder why any member would still be stupid enough to pay fast offerings on top of tithes.

IF you get anything from the bishop you will be expected to repay by not turning down any church jobs and cleaning the chapel, no matter how many $ thousands you have paid into the system.

In short, Mormonism is like a bad insurance company which will default when you need them.

Common sense should tell any TBM that it will be no different with the Salvation the church sells them for the eternities.
People need to wise up.

it must be divine intervention that i came by today...I was thinking about FlattopSF and came by to put my two cents in...and here is one of my posts from a year ago!! wow...I.MUST.GET.TO. CHURCH.NOW. :)