Miranda and Diego moved to New Haven from Virginia for her medical residency at Yale. As a doctor, Miranda’s practice includes seeing the impact of homelessness and food insecurity on health outcomes, exacerbating chronic and acute issues. DESK’s mission and vision include providing support to meet guests where they are at and to use food as an invitation to services to help move guests beyond homelessness and poverty and towards health and equity – including through our partnership with Cornell Scott Hill Medical Center on the third floor of our Drop-in and Resource Center.

Miranda says that DESK is an integral part of her New Haven experience and critical to supporting the city’s most vulnerable residents. 

“My husband and I first became aware of DESK when we moved nearby three years ago. New to town, part of my work orientation included a session on the history and demographics of New Haven. During that session, we learned the sobering statistics on poverty and homelessness in the city—especially striking given Connecticut’s overall wealth. From that point on, my admiration for and support of DESK only continued to grow.

Over time, we came to know many DESK patrons as our neighbors and were glad to welcome them back after the renovations at 266 State Street were completed. While some people may hold negative assumptions about those who rely on DESK’s services, my experiences have shown the opposite. Everyone I’ve encountered has been polite, friendly… well, neighborly!

Unfortunately, since budget cuts across the federal government, we’ve noticed an increase in families with young children turning to DESK for meals and other resources – further underscoring the organization’s important work.

Despite the daily hardships DESK faces, volunteering there is filled with warmth—from seasonal decorations to familiar faces with a smile. The Downtown Evening Soup Kitchen remains a place where those experiencing homelessness can still find community.”

We’re grateful for Miranda and Diego and encourage all of DESK’s supporters to follow their example and tell their loved ones, friends, and colleagues about the work that DESK does. Volunteer with your friends, challenge people you know to match your donation, and host drives with your school, company, or religious organization. Together, we can show our love for the New Haven community this Valentine’s Day.