WATERVILLE — As volunteers set up long tables Sunday with food and beverages, visitors near the Two Cent Bridge in Waterville gathered to enjoy free warm food and hot coffee.
Jessica Gammon of Winslow began the effort last year, coming to the Waterville side of the walking bridge to help serve the needy and the unhoused. She calls the volunteer community effort “This Thing We Do.”
“Essentially, it started with just a couple of people here who I would give free stuff to,” Gammon said. “The joy on their faces was priceless.”
Between 2 and 4 p.m. every Sunday, Gammon sets up her food station along the edge of the parking lot near the Two Cent Bridge and the Riverwalk at Heads of Falls. A pickup truck — full with warm clothing, food and beverages for those in need — is parked near her.
Jessica Gammon, right, greets Joseph Morissette while she and other volunteers serve hot food and beverages Sunday at the parking lot near the Two Cent Bridge in Waterville. Gammon of Winslow spearheaded the Sunday program that provides hot food and warm clothing for those in need, with about 15 volunteers involved in the effort.Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel
Gammon, 45, said the effort began last year when she visited the Two Cent Bridge and gave away food.
“I truly enjoy doing this because it helps me serve the community in a much bigger way,” she said.
Gammon receives donations from food pantries in the area, such as the Waterville Area Soup Kitchen and the Winslow Community Cupboard.
This past Sunday, people stopped for a cup of hot cocoa and hot dogs. Among them: Joseph Morissette, who said the effort is especially helpful during the winter months.
“It’s a good place for people to come down to and also meet with other people,” he said. “It really helps the community.”
A resident of Waterville for more than 40 years, Morissette said he feels financial pressure from the increasing cost of rent.
Joseph Morissette enjoys a hot drink and a bowl of Cajun potato soup Sunday at the parking lot near the Two Cent Bridge in Waterville. The Sunday program that provides hot food and warm clothing for those in need was spearheaded by Jessica Gammon of Winslow, with about 15 volunteers involved in the effort. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel
Each Sunday, Gammon serves a variety of food to visitors, ranging from hot dogs and baked beans to potato soup. Some of the food is prepared by local food pantries, some is provided by volunteers and local residents.
As the number of people served by Gammon and other volunteers began to grow, so did the variety of food, she said.
“We initially would serve coffee and cookies,” Gammon said. “As the group became larger, we started to incorporate more variety and options.”
The live barbecue counter on the table drew the most attention Sunday from visitors.
“Grab a plate and have a hot dog while it’s hot,” a volunteer said.
Some of the 15 volunteers who help run the effort are friends who have know Gammon for years, while others have learned of it through word-of-mouth or from its Facebook page.
“We are practically like family,” Linda Coelho, who volunteers with Gammon almost every Sunday, said. “Everyone deserves a smile no matter where they live.”
Gammon said she decided to hold the gatherings Sundays because the Waterville Area Soup Kitchen is closed that day.
“People are really hungry by Sunday,” she said, “and they need a place to go to.”
Meggin Heuring, who is staying at the Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter in Waterville, selects Sunday from free warm clothing, as hot food is served at the parking lot near the Two Cent Bridge in Waterville. The Sunday program that provides hot food and warm clothing for those in need was spearheaded by Jessica Gammon of Winslow, with about 15 volunteers involved in the effort. Rich Abrahamson/Morning Sentinel
Meggin Heuring, who now lives at the Mid-Maine Homeless Shelter in Waterville and has struggled for months to find a place to live, said she likes going to Gammon’s gathering every Sunday because “it makes me feel seen and wanted.”
“The fact that these people here are trying to make a difference is beautiful,” Heuring said.
Rummaging through cartons filled with jackets and other warm clothing, Heuring added, “I wish more people were making an effort.”
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