St. Joe Proud: Food Kitchen Director Prepares for Retirement
By: William Seay
Updated: February 25, 2013
(ST. JOSEPH, Mo.) The Open Door Food Kitchen is the best meal of the day for a lot of hungry people in St. Joseph.
And leading that effort for nine years has been director Judi Flesher, who has now announced her retirement.
"I'll be 76 this year. I thought it was about time," Flesher said. "My husband [Frank Flesher, the late executive director of St. Josephs National Military Heritage Museum] died last month so I thought 'Why am I still working?' Life is short. We're only given today. I really want to enjoy some time at the lake. I have a little cabin there. I love to fish. I thought somebody else for sure wants this job so I'll let somebody else take it."
The Food Kitchen serves between 150 and 200 meals a day - every day of the year.
Whether it's just an everyday lunch, or a Thanksgiving meal, it's Flesher that has overseen the operation.
She helped the food kitchen raise more than $200,000 in 2006, when the building needed renovations.
"This is a really great place, so many nice people come around here. The ones that come from the churches and the groups that serve, they're just a pleasure to be around. They always have good food and we have a good time," Flesher said.
Judi is one of only three employees of the Open Door Food Kitchen. The rest of the workers are volunteers.
The volunteers that know her well say Flesher will be missed.
"Her good management, her enthusiasm for helping people, and so she's been a great steward of the resources they have," said Gary Kincaid, a parishioner at St. Francis Xavier.
Kincaid and his church group come the fourth Monday of every month to prepare and serve a hearty lunch.
He has been volunteering at the Open Door Food Kitchen for fifteen years; he knows the kind of person the place needs to fill Flesher's shoes.
"[They need] someone that's a people person who has a real passion for helping those who are in need. She certainly has demonstrated that during her tenure," Kincaid said.
Flesher says there's a lot she'll remember about her time as director.
"It's a pleasant place to be around. I will remember the faces. Maybe not all the names, but I will remember the faces," she says with a smile.
Flesher says that she'll stay around for a little while to make sure her replacement is ready to take over.
She says her biggest piece of advice to the new director will be "don't sweat the small stuff, and it's mostly small stuff!"
And leading that effort for nine years has been director Judi Flesher, who has now announced her retirement.
"I'll be 76 this year. I thought it was about time," Flesher said. "My husband [Frank Flesher, the late executive director of St. Josephs National Military Heritage Museum] died last month so I thought 'Why am I still working?' Life is short. We're only given today. I really want to enjoy some time at the lake. I have a little cabin there. I love to fish. I thought somebody else for sure wants this job so I'll let somebody else take it."
The Food Kitchen serves between 150 and 200 meals a day - every day of the year.
Whether it's just an everyday lunch, or a Thanksgiving meal, it's Flesher that has overseen the operation.
She helped the food kitchen raise more than $200,000 in 2006, when the building needed renovations.
"This is a really great place, so many nice people come around here. The ones that come from the churches and the groups that serve, they're just a pleasure to be around. They always have good food and we have a good time," Flesher said.
Judi is one of only three employees of the Open Door Food Kitchen. The rest of the workers are volunteers.
The volunteers that know her well say Flesher will be missed.
"Her good management, her enthusiasm for helping people, and so she's been a great steward of the resources they have," said Gary Kincaid, a parishioner at St. Francis Xavier.
Kincaid and his church group come the fourth Monday of every month to prepare and serve a hearty lunch.
He has been volunteering at the Open Door Food Kitchen for fifteen years; he knows the kind of person the place needs to fill Flesher's shoes.
"[They need] someone that's a people person who has a real passion for helping those who are in need. She certainly has demonstrated that during her tenure," Kincaid said.
Flesher says there's a lot she'll remember about her time as director.
"It's a pleasant place to be around. I will remember the faces. Maybe not all the names, but I will remember the faces," she says with a smile.
Flesher says that she'll stay around for a little while to make sure her replacement is ready to take over.
She says her biggest piece of advice to the new director will be "don't sweat the small stuff, and it's mostly small stuff!"
