Every weekday, the Berkshire Food Project serves free lunch at the North Adams First Congregational Church. Executive Director Kim McMann says everyone is welcome in the dining hall. "A lot of people here are experiencing food insecurity, either without the funds to buy food or otherwise food insecure, but there are people who are not. We welcome everyone in our community, and we ask everyone in the community to come in."

What's on the menu depends on donations. It's kitchen manager Darlene Ellis' job to ensure patrons enjoy a wide variety of healthy meals. "If you have beef you can have beef stew, you can have beef stir fry, you can have stroganoff, you know. There's a lot of different things you can do with, you know, the same kind of product, so we don't repeat a lot."

The Berkshire Food Project serves more than 150 meals every weekday, and this year they've had more customers than ever. There has been a 20% increase in the number of people eating at the Berkshire Food Project this year. McMann says while it's possible the need for a free meal is increasing, she hopes the larger crowds are due to how well the Berkshire Food Project is doing their job. “What I’d like to think is that we’re getting better at meeting needs. We’re getting better at listening to people, hearing what they need, and then having those things.”

And for many, a trip to the dining hall is about more than just a free meal. It's a chance to socialize and make connections with others in the community. Gina Consolini is a Berkshire Food Project patron, “It’s a nice social network, especially when you don’t have family, you can come and sit and talk with people, you know. This is family, that’s the way I look at it, it’s family.”