LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Louisville-based caterer says her business is still dealing with pandemic setbacks and historic high inflation, making fears of closure grow.

By 8:00 a.m., this cozy commercial kitchen is working at full steam and Michele Brink is leading the way.

“We serve about 500 meals a day out of this kitchen and we deliver it all before 11 O’clock,” Brink said. 

Brink and her husband, Bob, have felt the same pain during the pandemic as any restaurant or caterer has during the last two-and-a-half years. The owners of “The Children’s Pantry” cater specifically to daycares and living facilities for dependent adults.

The Brinks say school closings and other COVID-era shutdowns and precautions limited their business.

“Things right now are extremely hard because of all the day care and school shutdowns. The daycares get funding from the state, but we’re in the loophole. There’s nothing for us,” Michele Brink said.

The PPP loan they received last year totaled about $5,000 dollars. Brink said it helped but was used up in days.

In attempts to get some business back while daycares were closed, The Children’s Pantry started home deliveries. But the effects of the pandemic and now month’s worth of historic inflation have the Brink’s business on the brink yet again.

A good deal of food items have doubled in price from a year ago, other food items are even more expensive and because of Brink’s work, her catering business cannot use donated food.

“Food is very expensive, and the food comes and goes through here. We don’t have much storage in here at all, so we pretty much buy food daily,” Brink explained.

The Brinks have started their own GoFundMe to raise money and keep their business afloat. Michele Brink has been in the food and hospitality industry her entire professional life. In fact, 20 years ago, she was a highly sought after and nationally recognized personal chef.

“I cooked every day. I would submit menus. I got so busy I did two a day. They had national conferences, and I actually taught a couple of those,” Brink recalls.

However, there was a point in her culinary career when Brink changed it up, taking her love of food into an area that requires a big heart as much as it does skill in the kitchen.

“The adults [clients] are disabled individuals, for the most part. Pretty traumatic [for] some of them, so it kind of tugs at your heart… They want good food, too. They look so forward to mealtime,” Brink said.

It’s because of her clients that she’s willing to take a personal loss as long as she’s feeding her soul.