Groundbreaking of New Restaurant and Training Facility: LuLu’s Kitchen

Today St. Matthew’s House was joined by our closest friends and supporters for the long-anticipated groundbreaking of a brand new, state of the art restaurant called LuLu’s Kitchen.

After serving breakfast, lunch, and dinner, 7 days a week in the same building since 1994, St. Matthew’s House has outgrown its kitchen facilities. In keeping with our social enterprise model, we have envisioned a new multifaceted facility, combining a catering kitchen for Delicious by Design as well as a restaurant that will be open to the public for breakfast and lunch.

Support the life-transforming work of St. Matthew’s House.

This central kitchen will also be utilized to train and employ men and women in the culinary field in area restaurants and at the Campbell Lodge or the Justin’s Place Recovery Program.

None of this would have been without the generous contributions made by The Holecek Family Foundation. Their vision and support have touched countless lives and transformed the futures of many men and women who have come to St. Matthew’s House. We are especially grateful for their partnership.

Find out more about our social enterprises.

St. Matthew’s House believes in social enterprises because they create a source of sustainable income for our organization, and they provide much-needed jobs for people in our care.

Currently, St. Matthew’s House owns and operates several unique businesses across thirteen locations in Southwest Florida including five thrift stores, a Starbucks café, two catering companies, a car wash and detailing center, and an inn and retreat center. These social enterprises generate nearly 70% of the income needed to operate St. Matthew’s House. Because sustainable enterprises cover all of the fundraising and administrative costs for the entire organization— 100% of every dollar donated to goes directly to our transformative, life-saving programs.

Read today’s Naples Daily News article featuring the groundbreaking.

Watch the Wink News story.

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We want to say a big thank you to the West Bay Community Charitable Foundation for their generous support of our Fort Myers Shelter for Women and Children! 💙 Your gift helps us provide safety, stability, and hope for families in need.

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Stay tuned for more exciting updates to come later this year as construction gets underway.

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Video Reels Shout out to one of our #CommunityPartners: Physicians Regional. Across their two campuses, they hosted a super successful peanut butter drive for our #FoodAssistance Program collecting over $10,000 worth of product!

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Congrats to Marco on being presented a Core Value Award by his supervisor! Marco displayed a helpful and healing demeanor as he aided a volunteer in a health emergency at Campbell Lodge.

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Video Reels Thank you to our staff and volunteers who are working the US Open Pickleball Championships. If you're there, stop by our tent to say hi and get a delicious bite to eat!

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