Staff photo / R. Michael Semple Ray Battaglia of Girard, a volunteer at the St. Vincent de Paul Society dining hall in Warren, packs meals for distribution at the dining hall on North Road earlier this week. The agency served more than 113,000 meals last fiscal year, according to Darlene Jones, CEO for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Northeast Ohio District Council.

WARREN — The Society of St.Vincent de Paul is planning a nearly $4 million dining hall expansion to start in 2025.

Darlene Jones, CEO for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Northeast Ohio District Council, said in the last fiscal year, the dining hall off Niles Road served more than 113,000 meals.

She said because of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020 and the economic downturn, the number of people needing meals, food and other assistance keeps growing.

“We will be starting renovation and expansion on our dining hall off Niles Road. It will be done in three phases. We have outgrown the current building,” Jones said.

Plans are to add onto the two sides and the back of the building.

She said the first phase allows for feeding up to 125 people in an expanded dining hall that will be a cafetorium for use as a cafeteria and auditorium. The room not only will be used for a dining hall, but also as an education center for the workforce development program and as a community center for the Warren community.

“The different organizations and groups will have access to use the building,” Jones said.

She said the center will be needed since people have struggled financially the past few years, often having to choose between putting gas in a car or buying shoes for their children.

Jones said funding is in place through a capital campaign for the $3.9 million project.

There will be three phases: first, a 125-person dining room with a bigger kitchen; second, a larger prep area; and third, more storage.

Jones said there are many private donors and commitments of financial help from Warren city and Trumbull County officials.

There are also plans to expand the Back2Work program and the workforce development program, which is why more space is needed. Jones said the Back2Work program helps individuals coming out of jail or drug and alcohol recovery find jobs through job skills training.

Eighteen people have been through the program and are now employed.

Jones said there are 21 different groups who use the building or volunteer at the building each month.

“The current 4,000-square foot building can only seat 42 people. We serve meals between 11:30 a.m. and 1 p.m. six days a week and there is no way to get 550 people through there,” she said, noting the new building will be four times bigger.

The people needing food line up outside the door of the dining hall in their vehicles.

Prior to COVID-19, the dining hall, operated totally by volunteers, was serving 150 in-person meals a day.

Since then, all meals have been served curbside and the requests have quadrupled.

Jones said the plan for the second phase opens up the kitchen area and the third phase expands the area for dry goods and storage with commercial freezers. She said the goal is to have the dining area and kitchen set up within the next year, the prep area in two years and the storage facility ready in three years.

A recent fundraiser was held at Perkins Park that included a Friends of the Poor Walk.

“The primary goal for us is to be able to get more people back on their feet and become self-sufficient and provide for their families,” she said.

Denny Rossi, president of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Northeast Ohio District Council advisory board, said the new building will continue to provide socialization for people in the community who come there.

“We provide a place for people to go for socialization with other people. I remember in August, we served 568 meals in one month. We have limited space, even in the offices, so they have to have meetings. We have a building just designated for clothing. We have a mattress program and give mattresses to people who have children sleeping on the floor,” Rossi said.

He said with the first phase of the project, there will be space available for people to be in classrooms for educational programs. Rossi said some people may have been in prison and are looking for the opportunity to get back into the job force and they need job training.

“This new building will provide a centralized location for everything. A large building will allow us to do many things such as storing food, and a larger kitchen to accommodate more people,” Rossi said.

He said the many volunteers help the society do all that they can to help others.

“We have a great organization led by great people,” Rossi said.

Lou Lepro, past president, who helps pick up food and help at the dining hall, said the larger facility will be successful.

“There is a need to help and serve more people and this building will help us do that,” he said.