Every weekend, under the roof of a white church in Hamden, shared laughter can be found, along with the creation of long-lasting memories and good atmospheres.

Grace and St. John’s Episcopal Church, located in the heart of Hamden, Connecticut, hosts their popular weekly event Dinner for a Dollar. The dinner — which costs just a dollar to attend — offers the less fortunate a hot meal and a place of prayer every night.  

But the dinners are seen as more than just a cheap meal. They embody a message the Hamden community has been pushing for years: no one should go to sleep or end the day hungry.

Allison Batson, Lay Minister for Children and Youth and the founder of the program, started the event due to the lingering effects of the 2008 recession, which left many Hamden families struggling to afford food despite outward appearances of stability. 

“There was a perception that everybody was okay, but it really was on the surface,” Batson said.

“Because we had families in our community that were maybe paying their mortgage, paying their car note and insurance and didn't have a lot left over for food. So they looked prosperous, but they were struggling.”

Batson, with the help of volunteers, cleaned out the church basement, propped up tables and transformed the area into a dining room for everyone, no matter your situation.

“We have a core group of volunteers that are here every Friday,” Batson said. “I count on them.”

Since Dinner for a Dollar first opened its doors thirteen years ago, there has only been one Friday where no dinner was held — due to the February 2013 North American blizzard — where Hamden received 40 inches of snow.

That's 676 Fridays — just one miss.

John Cerritelli has been going to Dinner for a Dollar for six years. Cerritelli belonged to an Episcopal church in Massachusetts — but after moving back to Connecticut he came across the white chapel while driving on Dixwell Avenue.

“We just love the sense of community,” Cerritelli said. “Everyone here is wonderful. It’s a place to go where everyone knows your name.”

In addition to the weekly dinners on Fridays at Grace and St. Johns, Dinner for a Dollar is hosted on different days and throughout Hamden: Saturday nights from 6-7 p.m. are at Hamden Plains United Methodist Church, Sunday from 3-4 p.m. is from Grace and St John’s food truck at 1935 State Street, and first and third Thursdays from 4-5 p.m. are at Christian Tabernacle Church on Newhall Street.  

Like the participants at Dinner for a Dollar, the volunteers come from many different walks of life. From teenagers still in high school to people well into their adult years — there’s a diverse set of people ready to pitch in.

The Delgado sisters of Hamden have been volunteering for the last five years on Saturdays at  Hamden Plains United Methodist.  

Reneejah Delgado, a sophomore at Hamden High School, has been with the church since she was a child. From her experience of handing out food to others, she’s witnessed firsthand how important the dinners are not only for herself, but for others. 

“I think it's really opened my eyes to see more of the people who are in need,” Reneejah said.  

“It really made me realize how much I'm helping people out there. Even if there's people who come around and might not even have the dollar. I feel like it's just really good to be open hearted, to be able to donate to those who feel like they're welcome to come here.”

Reneejah believes the dinners have made a difference, and has allowed people to be more comfortable asking for help. The frequent volunteer emphasized how much the dinners have brought participants hope and faith.

“I think that once you talk about the way that they're blessed to be able to come here, just to come to church, it kind of brings them closer and gives them a strong relationship with God,” Reneejah said.

Reneejah’s sister, Persia, also volunteers at the dinners and has been helping out since the beginning. Her role with the organization is the lay servant, which includes preaching, handling the youth’s ministries and helping the church’s Pastor, Cleaven Johnson, when needed.

Throughout her time associated with the church, Persia has seen just how special these dinners are for residents in the area. Some participants have come originally for the meal, but continue to go as the dinners provide more than just food to eat, but a feeling of belongingness and appreciation. 

“I think that it makes me feel really good that I see that people come back,” Persia said. “And like I said, their energy is better every time they come back.” 

As the dinners continue to bring the community of Hamden together through food and good times, the volunteers hope they can continue to do what they love. Reneejah in particular believes that the dinners should always stay the same price because of how much they make a difference.

“I feel like there's never too much help,” Reneejah said. “There's never too much guidance towards people. So I feel like that. it definitely should be something that is more worldwide.”

The volunteers help out with everything, such as acquiring the food, using companies such as BJ's, Costco and Restaurant Depot. The church also purchases from chain businesses like New Haven’s Bruegger’s Bagels, and supports local businesses such as Book Trader Café in New Haven. 

Dinner for a Dollar also supports and works with local colleges, such as Quinnipiac University and Southern Connecticut State University. The church also accepts food donations from food recovery organizations such as Haven’s Harvest. 
Randi Harrell, a member of the church who helps run the dinners, enjoys giving her time to help others in the area. 

“Love it,” Harrell said. “I really do, because there’s so many people who don’t realize that it's the little things that count.”

Harrell and her children help out whenever they can. It can be difficult at times for the family, as they sometimes travel out of state. Nonetheless, whenever they can lend a helping hand, they do.

“I always encourage them (to) grab somebody,” Harrell said. “Call somebody who's coming this week, because normally it's just Persia, myself and Reneejah who serve.”

As time goes by and the organization continues to serve three dinners a week, there are times where Harrell and the others see different faces walk in to do their part.

“We bond with the people that come, and we bond together with each other," Batson said. "We've gone to funerals. We've gone to people’s houses. They know us, we know them. When someone passes away, we remember them, we talk about them. It means a lot to us."

“This brings us together.”

While Dinner for a Dollar provides meals to anyone who walks through the door, food insecurity is just one piece of a larger issue — homelessness. In Hamden, the unhoused population has grown in recent years, with individuals seeking shelter all.

“Hamden, in particular, is just now starting to open its eyes to our homeless population, instead of sending them down to New Haven," Batson said. "We've had people sleeping on the lawn, you see them here, and you can see that they are clearly unhoused. Hamden really has to do more to be proactive about attacking that problem, but so does everybody."

Through partnerships with organizations like Columbus House and United Way of Greater New Haven, Dinner for a Dollar helps connect unhoused individuals with shelters, warming centers, and caseworkers.

While Dinner for a Dollar provides a warm meal and a welcoming space, the harsh reality is that for some, it’s the only shelter they’ll have that night as long-term solutions remain scarce.

“We have people that come through here that are unhoused, and when we identify them, we try to connect them with services as much as we can," Batson said.

“But there are limits to what we can do. They come here, they can use the bathroom, they can wash up, they can have a warm meal, they can sit for a while, but then when we’re closed, we’re closed. And that’s a hard pill to swallow, knowing that especially in the winter, they’re leaving and they have nowhere to go."

While Batson and her team do everything they can to help, she believes Hamden must take more action to support its unhoused population instead of relying on nearby cities like New Haven to bear the burden.

Whether it’s just one meal or impacting someone’s life beyond one stay, Dinner for a Dollar is truly making a difference for the people of Hamden and will likely continue to make an impact for generations to come.