Community Help in Park Slope (CHiPS) was founded 51 years ago on the conviction that everyone deserves the right to a meal. Today, we operate a soup kitchen serving more than 175 nutritious meals to our friends and neighbors daily and a food pantry distributing 100+ bags of non-perishable goods and fresh produce weekly to the community. We’ve even expanded our reach to supporting single mothers and their infants with pre and post natal care through our Frances Residence. CHiPS continues to offer assistance to people based solely on need— we provide access to nutritious meals to those experiencing food insecurity many for the first time due to the current economic climate. Since the early part of the pandemic, we’ve kept our doors open; our staff and volunteers are on the frontlines each and every day. CHiPS will be here as long as there is a need, our work remains even more relevant today then it was 50 years ago.

As we celebrate our 50th anniversary

We were able to connect with Paul Wilkes, co-founder of CHiPS. Paul shared with us some of his favorite stories about the early stages of CHiPS. This is what he had to say.

“I handed the landlord $125 in cash, which Ed Mohler and I had chipped in to pay the first month’s rent. Ed and I and our wives had been meeting with a prayer group for over a year and had talked and prayed about having a “street presence,” where we could leave the comfort of our living rooms and actually serve those in need. Well, here we were.
We used a hot plate in the St. Francis Xavier rectory basement – no more than some cans of Campbell’s supplemented with whatever vegetables the members of our little community had in their refrigerators we offered the soup and ourselves to whomever walked in. Christian Help in Park Slope – CHiPS – was born.

I had no grand plan as each day unfolded, I simply wanted to listen and respond – as best I could, with the limited time, abilities, and resources that I had. It’s all I knew to do. I never had the discipline or inclination to keep a diary, but we did keep a log at CHIPS so we could follow up on our guests, as we called them. And, today as I leaf through those early pages of CHIPS history, I know that something very good was being born. We prevented the poor and handicapped from being evicted. We got jobs where none were to be found. We rescued battered wives and children from abusive husbands and fathers.  We, the volunteers, and those who came through our door were different in kind, but not in essence.” 

Today, all of us at CHiPS toil day and night to maintain Paul’s vision of a safe harbor to all those who are in need of kind words, a hot meal, and a warm bed. Here at CHiPS, no problem is still too small or large; here at CHiPS, we make the impossible a reality.

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CHiPS 2022 Historic Honorees:

CHiPS is proud to honor three unique individuals for their work with Sister Mary and commitment to the mission of CHiPS.

1. 1. Richard Carlson
   2. Paul Kennedy
   3. Richard Sexton

2022 Corporate Honoree:

We are honoring a valued corporate partner that has created a lasting impact in our programming.

2022 Individual Honoree: Brother Tom Barton, OSF

Brother Thomas Barton, OSF, a constant, familiar face and trusted CHiPS champion, successfully led CHiPS through the height of the pandemic. We’re grateful for his service, past, present, and future.