Faith On Every Corner_July 2017_CR

Coffee Is On
Ted Rhoads
As a Wednesday morning dawns, the small church
parking lot is filling with cars and pickup trucks as
people make their way into the large downstairs
fellowship room. This is not your average prayer
meeting, Bible study, or church get together. People
are coming to eat breakfast and network with friends
and neighbors from nearby and not so close.
Coffee Is On is the name of the ministry started by
Ted Rhoads at Rainsboro United Methodist Church
in the rural farming community of Rainsboro, Ohio.
It is an acronym for Christ Offers Forgiveness For
Everyone, Everywhere, In Search Or Need.
On Wednesday mornings from 7 am to 10 am,
Ted and his team of volunteers serve breakfast,
cooked to order, to those seated at long tables in
the large basement room under the main church.
The kitchen is large and exceptionally well
equipped to accommodate Ted and his crew of
volunteers as they serve as many as 104 men,
women, and children. Considering the usual church
attendance is approximately 25, this is truly an
outreach ministry.
Breakfast usually includes eggs (any style),
bacon, toast, potatoes casserole, biscuits, gravy, and
grits. Some people come in before they head off to
work, children are fed before going to school, and
many just stop by to start their day with nourishment
and fellowship. There is always a large contingent
of retirees as well. The ministry’s motto is
“Order what you want, eat what you get.” The idea
for Coffee Is On came to Ted after the local truck
stop diner closed in 2012. Ted had helped out at the
diner where local farmers and residents would meet
to eat, swap stories, and support each other. Once
the only such place in the area ceased business, he
thought that his church kitchen and large fellowship
center could fill the void. Opening day welcomed
seventeen people. On most weeks, the number now
exceeds seventy. Last year more than 3,700 people
were served with about ninety-five percent of them
eating a cooked meal. It is impossible to calculate
how many cups of coffee have been served over the
past five years.
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