The Lord’s Diner has reached a significant milestone by serving its 20,000th meal at the Oaklawn Activity Center in Derby. This achievement was celebrated on Tuesday evening, October 22. Emily Thome, director of The Lord’s Diner, emphasized the impact of this accomplishment: “We celebrated 20,000 meals,” she stated last week, highlighting that it represented “20,000 times somebody didn’t have to go to bed hungry.”

The Oaklawn outreach is a relatively new initiative for The Lord's Diner. It began when the Derby Recreation Center approached the organization to address food scarcity in the area identified as a food desert. Plans were initially delayed due to the Covid pandemic.

Thome mentioned her primary goal upon taking over was restoring pre-Covid service levels. During the pandemic, meals were provided as take-out only. Approximately a year into her leadership, there was a request from the Oaklawn community for a Diner food truck.

Instead of adding another food truck, Thome proposed delivering meals prepared at Wichita’s downtown location to be distributed at Oaklawn Activity Center. Here, meals are packaged in to-go containers and handed out to those who drive up.

“So, The Lord’s Diner provides the food, just like a food truck, Monday through Friday,” said Thome. Meals are served between 5 and 6 p.m., with assistance from one staff member and several volunteers provided by the Derby Recreation Commission through the Oaklawn Activity Center.

This initiative began on February 13, 2024—the diner’s 22nd anniversary—and has been successful since then. “We serve right around 100 to 150 guests a day,” noted Thome with enthusiasm about reaching their milestone of 20,000 meals.

The cost-effectiveness of these efforts is notable; each meal costs The Lord’s Diner approximately $1 compared to an estimated $5-$10 if purchased independently by residents. Thome expressed pride in infusing “$100,000 to $200,000 back into that little community where those people could pay rent... medical bills... utilities.”