What started as Kentucky’s first community restaurant, previously located in Danville on 4th Street from 2015 to 2020, Grace Café is transforming into something fresh and different.

Reopening in 2024 as a food trailer, Grace Café will serve up the same great mission, only now the nonprofit café is going mobile.

Rebranded as Grace on the Go, the food trailer will aim to increase food security in Danville and Boyle County by providing access to healthy food on a pay-what-you-can basis. A food trailer will give the organization the ability to serve food with dignity throughout the community.

“We are hopeful that we will reach more people who are food insecure, including those among us who are most vulnerable and face transportation barriers, namely children and the elderly,” said Jennifer Earle, Executive Director, who has been with the organization since 2015. “We live in a very prosperous community, yet many of our neighbors are food insecure.”

In fact, over 3,500 Boyle County residents are food insecure, which is nearly 12% of the population, according to the latest study from Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap research. Among those who don’t know where their next meal is coming from, nearly 800 are children. To help alleviate this problem, since 2021, Grace Café has been operating a weekly Snack Bag program run by dedicated volunteers for Danville High School students who face food insecurity.

“With the community’s help, we are ready and positioned to do even more,” said Mary Beth Murray, Director of Development and Communications. “For those of us that were able to experience the magic and mission of Grace Café firsthand, we know how much bringing back this community asset means to people.”

Volunteerism will be a highlight of Grace on the Go as well. The food trailer operations will be run by a small paid staff, but the volunteers will infuse a greater sense of community and connection to the work. Research supports the positive effects of volunteering on wellbeing as it improves physical and mental health, provides a sense of purpose and teaches valuable skills, and nurtures new and existing relationships (Mayo Clinic, 2023).

Through its non-profit food trailer model, Grace on the Go will help make fresh, nutritious food more available to people throughout the area. Aligning with its founding community café model, meals will have a suggested price with a pay-what-you-can option. If one can’t pay for their meal, they can work at the trailer in exchange for it. Grace Café has always believed in a hand-up, not a hand-out, and strives for reciprocity.

The success of Grace Café’s new endeavor depends on community support and effective partnerships. Its aim is to create a community where everybody eats and to advance the work of grace for all. Currently, the nonprofit is in the process of raising $75,000 to purchase a food trailer, outfit it, and acquire the truck to haul it.

If you would like to give toward Grace Café’s mission and help get the food trailer rolling, please mail your check to Grace Café, P.O. Box 2384, Danville, KY 40423 or visit gracecafeky.org/donate to make a tax-deductible donation. To learn more, visit gracecafeky.org.