Charity cafe in Beirut feeds homeless and refugees

(25 Dec 2015) LEAD-IN: Open for less than a year, a new charity-run cafe in Beirut is already feeding close to 200 people a day. An initiative of a local clergyman, the bustling soup kitchen is open to all people in need, regardless of age, race or religion. STORY-LINE: Young Lebanese street kids sit at tables alongside elderly Syrian refugees at this lively cafe in the Burj Hammoud, north east of Beirut. It's a soup kitchen funded by donations from private individuals and restaurants run by the charitable association Bonheur du Ceil. The charity runs five cafes like this one, alongside drug rehabilitation programmes and other initiatives. "I volunteer here. We are all one family here," says volunteer Sola. "We have new brothers and children. It is nice when one of the kids call you 'mum'. It is really nice. It's good for whoever can help. We are the ones winning here and not them." Another volunteer, George, is a former addict helping in the kitchen as part of his rehabilitation programme. "I must help. God gave me a lot, so I must help as I was helped," he says. Father Majdi Allawi is the driving force behind this cafe. "I can't tell someone, 'I'll pray for you and you won't be hungry or be warm.' I must do something," he says. Father Allawi blames the Lebanese government for not doing enough, saying: "It is not acceptable to have hunger". "We should get rid of the prime minister, ministers, the justice minister and everything. There are people in Lebanon who are not only hungry, but also thirsty. We visited the poor neighbourhoods and the government cut their water off because they didn't pay," he adds. For some homeless people, such as Ara Tamian, this place is a saving grace. "I have been coming here to Father Majdi (Allawi's) place for four months. I met a lot of people like me, homeless and in need of a lot, hungry people who need Jesus Christ. Jesus saved us and Father Majdi (Allawi) is saving us. He saved us all and he is feeding us all, he says. Hasan, from Aleppo in Syria, says the food is as good as "five-star" restaurants. "You come, order what you want, eat, say thank you, take your things and leave," he says. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...