(WHTM) — The food and service are as good as you would find at an upscale buffet, even though many of the customers wouldn’t be able to pay for something simpler.
The residents of Harrisburg’s Tent City know that when Chef Tom is around, they are in for quite a meal.
“Quality meats. I use all the best ingredients, seasoned perfectly, cooked right,” Tom said. “If it’s overcooked, it goes in the trash. I take a lot of pride in what I do, whether it’s for free or whether it is for $100 a meal.”
And that is important because this meal is free. Chef Tom doesn’t use his last name, but he doesn’t have to because everyone here knows him.
“Every Wednesday I come down and feed these guys,” Tom said.
And he does mean every Wednesday.
“It snowed two weeks ago, and they called me, ‘Are we serving in the snow?’ I said, ‘Well, they’re hungry in the snow,'” Tom said. “And as they were sipping the soup, you could see the warmth go through them, the people down here. And it just was very rewarding.”
People used to pay Tom for his food.
“I was in the restaurant field as a caterer and a restaurant diner owner,” Tom said.
Then he retired.
“And you know I was getting on my wife’s nerves, to be honest with you,” Tom said. “She said, ‘Get a job or do something,’ so I decided I was just going to help the community.”
And here we are. Tom doesn’t do it alone as there are lots of volunteers, like two teen girls, Grace Peck and Bethany Karamtad.
“We believe God has sent us here,” Karamtad said
They are from the Samuel School in New Cumberland.
“I hope they know and realize how much they’re loved,” Peck said.
“I lost my wife from cancer, and it made me lose everything, including myself, to the point where I became homeless,” Tent City resident Jesse Gainer said.
Folks like Gainer are not only getting fed.
“We have a lady that is a beautician,” Tom said.
“And I’m here because everybody deserves to look good,” Ania Hoffman, who is giving the residents free haircuts, said.
“Chef Tom is a great man who, first off, knows how to cook,” Gainer said. “Whether there’s two feet of snow or not, he’s making us breakfast or dinner. He really is a blessing. Himself, not just the food.”