Our Story
Cheryl will tell you God gave her a vision to minister to the students of Southwestern University by providing a homecooked meal at no charge. Fulfilling that vision, in the fall of 2014, Church Lunch (CHUNCH) was born at Crestview Baptist Church.
Our first lunch was served on September 8, 2014, and with great anticipation and positivity Cheryl and the volunteers prepared food for 100. Well, 7 students came in two groups, one group of 3 and a second group of 4 that were vegan. At that time, we had a salad and fruit bar, but no options for a vegan diet. Cheryl promised if they would come back the next week there would be a vegan dish for them.
The following Monday, once again with great anticipation and positivity, Cheryl and the volunteers prepared for, you guessed it, 100. We didn’t quite hit 100 that day but attendance did increase 100% as 14 students joined us. In case you’re wondering, the 4 vegan students did return to find several options made just for them. They were eager to share meal ideas that helped make the vegan station what it is today.
The third week was pivotal in many ways and includes the story of 25. It is an amazing story. If you want to hear about it, find Ms Cheryl at Chunch and just ask her to tell you the story of 25. To make a long story short, the numbers quickly grew to 100 and continued to grow. Fast forward to 2026 and Chunch is serving around 700 every Monday.