Once a Volunteer, She’s Now the Champion of Breakfast

Breakfast at St. Francis Seraph Ministries (SFSM) helps guests start their day on a positive note, and it’s not just because of the food — it’s because of the friendship.

“If I can brighten somebody’s day, even if it’s for an hour, that makes my day,” SFSM Breakfast Manager Karen Murphy says. “When I can, I sit and talk to our guests. They just really like that someone cares what they have to say.”

Karen, a lifelong West Sider who belongs to St. Jude the Apostle Parish, began volunteering three days a week in 2018 before becoming a staff member. Each morning, she makes sure everyone gets plenty of cereal, bagels, doughnuts, fruit, and coffee, as well as a bagged lunch to take with them to nourish them throughout the day. She also ensures guests get the love and respect that truly nurtures their souls.

As a child, Karen witnessed her grandfather struggle with addiction and homelessness. In the years since, she’s seen too many people walk past unhoused neighbors on the street without giving them a second thought.

“I feel for them when people just totally ignore them. They’re human beings,” she says. “I connect with our guests. They like to see me, and I like to see them.”

Karen knows our guests by their first names, and if she hasn’t seen someone at breakfast for a while, she puts the word out for them on the street. “If I do that,” she says, “usually they’re back in about a week to check in.”

In addition to meeting guests’ immediate needs for a filling meal, she embraces opportunities to help them take the next steps to a better life by linking them to community resources.

“If I can get one or two off the streets and into somewhere they can get connected to housing,” Karen says, “that’s the ultimate for me.”

This winter, with temperatures dipping into single digits at times, Karen has been opening the doors earlier to get folks off the street and into the warmth of SFSM. That warmth, she says, is more than physical. It’s a feeling that extends from everyone she works with to every guest we serve. Every single person is committed to helping our neighbors in need — and to supporting one another, as well.

“It’s a family atmosphere,” she says. “Everybody knows everybody, and everybody is out for the same thing: to help our clients. It’s a close-knit organization, and I love that.”