CAWL, Welsh cakes, and support for those who need it were on the menu at the official opening of Milford Haven’s new community kitchen on Monday (March 2).

The project, which has been running for the last month, offers free or low cost meals to people who are homeless or can’t afford to eat properly, and local people who are able to donate towards the cost of food.

Twenty-year-old Robert, from Milford Haven, has been staying with friends for the last two months, after his parents kicked him out.

He said the community kitchen would provide a lifeline for those who needed it.

“I don’t want to be going round my mates’ and eating all their food when I can’t share anything back,” he said.

Before he left home, Robert said he had been fighting with his parents, due to having relapsed into inhaling lighter fluid.

“I ended up back on it even though I shouldn’t have,” he said.

Robert says he has now kicked the habit again, and is concentrating on his college work.

“I want to stick my course out and get qualified and get on,” he said.

Sara Hurley, who came up with the project, said it was bittersweet to see people like Robert using the service.

“On one hand we’re glad people know we’re here, on the other we wish we didn’t have to be,” she said.

She added: “We can offer guidance and support too, not just food. We’re like a big family here so we can keep an eye on people.”

Last weekend, Haverfordwest councillor Sue Murray and friend Saskia van Schip spent 24 hours on the streets of Haverfordwest to raise awareness of the project.

As well as speaking to genuine homeless people, the pair also raised more than £175 from passers-by.

Describing the experience, Cllr Murray said: “Life on the street takes on a whole new ball game. “Simple things like going to the loo, what do you do in the middle of the night when public toilets are closed? “

She added: “Life on the street grinds you down, but it is an experience and I am glad I did it.

“We have proved a point in that there are homeless people in Haverfordwest, and raised a lot of money for the Community Kitchen and I know that we are very passionate about this.”

Members of the community kitchen will be in Morrisons Car Park on Saturday, March 14, and every Saturday night thereafter at 8.30pm and then at Gelliswick Beach at 9.30pm, to offer soup, cake, and hot drinks to those who need it.

 

To view Saskia's video diary, visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-E96yDlmLM&feature=youtu.be.