What We Do
The Kitchen provides emergency shelter, case management, housing assistance, and affordable housing for families, individuals, youth, seniors, and Veterans in Greene, Christian, and Webster counties. Read more about our approach to housing stability.
Mission
We bring stability and purpose to people who are homeless.
Vision
A community without homelessness
Values
Respect, Dignity, Quality, Service, Compassion
How It Started
In 1983, Sister Lorraine Biebel served a meal to the hungry on Palm Sunday, kickstarting the work of The Kitchen. Sr. Lorraine was a nun in the Order of St. Francis. She was originally trained as a nurse but was called to serve the poor as the need in Springfield became apparent. Under her direction, services quickly grew to include emergency shelter, case management, and housing assistance. Our focus today is housing stability—helping folks get back to and stay in permanent housing.
The Kitchen is guided by humanitarian beliefs, the inspiration of our founder Sister Lorraine Biebel, and Franciscan values of charity, benevolence, and selflessness. The Kitchen believes in the worth of each person and honors individual identity and self-determination.
Our Programs
Affordable Housing Developments provide affordable housing to low-income renters in Springfield to prevent homelessness.
Community Housing provides case management and housing assistance for families, individuals, youth, and seniors who are homeless.
Emergency Shelter provides temporary shelter for families and individuals as they prepare to move into permanent, affordable housing.
Home At Last provides case management and housing assistance for Veterans and their families who are or at-risk of becoming homeless.
Rare Breed Youth Services provides immediate access to basic needs and rapid access to community services for homeless and at-risk youth ages 13-24.
Nationally Accredited
The Kitchen is accredited by the Council on Accreditation (COA), an independent, nonprofit organization that partners with human service organizations worldwide to improve service delivery outcomes by developing, applying, and promoting appropriate best practice standards.
COA accreditation ensures that we are providing the very best possible services to our participants and is a mechanism that enables The Kitchen to continually improve and evaluate the way it delivers services. Achieving COA accreditation means The Kitchen is among the best in the field. We are proud to be a part of this community of excellence.
Board of Trustees
Ellen Hammock, President
CoxHealth
Rob Fridge, Vice President
Drury University
Susan Gladden, Secretary
Citizens Memorial Hospital
Kim Tilley, Treasurer
Mercy
Jen Albers
FORVIS
Katie Bolt-Goeke
Retired, Clinical Social Worker
Abby Glenn
Central Bank
Eileen R. Hamra
Fit Together, LLC
Dr. Katie Hoegeman
Missouri State University
Stephanie Ireland
Ireland Architects
Tonya King
Cosmetologist
Lauren Korbal
Cadence Bank
Eric Latimer
Springfield Fire Department
Farley Lewis
Artist
Danielle Poulson-Jones
Evangel University
Diane Winter Reidle
Retired, Pharmaceutical Sales
Deborah Tuck
Guaranty Bank
Austin Williamson
Rooney McBride & Smith
Foundation Board
Diane Winter Reidle, President
Retired, Pharmaceutical Sales
Judy Bilyeu, VP
Metro Appliances & More
Bill Hennessey, Treasurer
Mercy
Chase Banta
Embark Staffing
Erin Goodman
Red Crow Marketing, Inc.
Becky Gullett
Commerce Bank
Chris Jones
City Utilities
Shelley Marshall
Merrill Lynch
Sophie Pierpoint
Old Missouri Bank
Brian Russell
Great American Title Company
Meleah Spencer
The Kitchen, Inc.
Deborah Stinnett
Ozark Technical Community College
Kerrie Van Sickle
O’Reilly Hospitality Management