Orlando Faith Ministries will distribute hot meals to struggling families. Photo by Julia M. Cameron from Pexels

Orlando Faith Ministries distributed free cooked meals on Wednesday, Nov. 24. The Orlando church wanted to extend a helping hand to struggling families and individuals during the holidays. 

Free hot meals for the holidays

In a report with Orange Observer, the hot meals included chicken, potatoes, green beans, and dinner rolls. The church also gave away other holiday essentials during the distribution.

Denise Johnson, the church's pastor, said they planned to hand out 200 meals. The church announced its event on its Facebook page. 

Orlando Faith Ministries encouraged those who needed food to come to the event. Volunteers were also urged to help with the distribution. 

Filling the need

Johnson said they needed to fill in the need of many people. She stressed that many communities were still hurting. As a pastor, she wanted to help people celebrate the holidays. She also wanted to help people in the homeless communities. 

This distribution event was the church's way of reaching out and helping. 

The pastor added that it was God who helped pave the way for this event. She stressed that they worked hard to be a loving and giving church. 

The church also offered drive-through prayers during the event. 

Johnson told the news outlet that her husband, Willie made everything possible. Willie Johnson is the senior pastor of the church. 

Volunteers also helped pack and distribute food during the event. 

The event was a drive-through or walk-through. The church said they wanted to maintain safety measures during the distribution. They also stressed that they wanted to lessen contact. 

Those who went to get the free meals drove up to the event while volunteers and church members handed out the food. 

The poverty rate in Orlando

According to the Welfare Info website, the poverty rate for Orlando is 19.1 percent. The data meant that one out of every 5.2 residents in the city lives in poverty. 

Records also showed that 51,047 of 266,586 Orlando residents reported income levels below the poverty line.

Homelessness in Central Florida

According to the Coalition for the Homeless of Central Florida, homelessness has become a problem in the area. There are only 13 affordable housing units for every 100 low-income households. 

The website said that almost 9,700 students were homeless during the past academic year. From those numbers, 7,415 students shared housing. Another 1,852 students lived in hotels, 289 lived in shelters, and 134 slept in cars or parks.

The coalition said that homelessness gave individuals an increased risk of mental and physical health issues. Some of these issues included drug dependency, sleep deprivation, and poor physical health. 

The data reported that minimum wage earners ($8.2 an hour) have to work 84 hours each week to afford a one-bedroom rental in Florida.

The report also said that different factors contributed to homelessness. Loss of income or employment was one of these factors. 

Victims of domestic violence also found themselves out on the streets to escape their unsafe homes. 

Orlando also had a lack of affordable housing. According to the data presented by the coalition, individuals had to earn an hourly wage of $21.08 to afford a two-bedroom apartment.

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