GREENFIELD – Jill Ebbert is ready for the next chapter.
The longtime director at the Kenneth Butler Memorial Soup Kitchen in Greenfield plans to retire in September, and has been interviewing candidates to take over her position sometime this year.
Beloved by many, those who know Ebbert say the successor will have huge shoes to fill.
The lifelong Hancock County resident has spent the past 15 years serving as a friend and surrogate family member to many who stop by the soup kitchen for a hot meal, and often a hug.
“My top priority from Day 1 was to have people feel like they had just walked into Grandma’s house when they came through our door,” said Ebbert.
“Grandma loves you unconditionally regardless of what you have or haven’t done and she wants to feed you,” she said.
Ebbert has relished the chance to serve as stand-in family for those who need a little love and compassion as much as they need a warm meal.
“I have always loved being with people. I was taught to love and respect people, but most of all to help when help is needed, and not when it’s convenient for me,” Ebbert said last week.
“I have met and formed loving relationships with thousands of people I would never have come in contact with if I hadn’t been here,” she said.
“The kitchen is a fast-paced and hectic place with lots of drama but, at the end of the day, I always know someone’s life is better because we are here,” said the longtime director, who is embracing the start of a new chapter in her life at the age of 70.
Ebbert had been pondering and praying about retirement for a couple of months when her husband passed away last November.
With her life, “forever changed, I began to realize that it was time for a new Jill,” she said.
“I want more time with family and friends, travel time, and just play time. A new chapter is opening, and I don’t want to miss a thing.”
She and the soup kitchen’s search committee has been interviewing candidates to replace her. Two were invited for a second interview this week, she said, but applications are still open.
Ebbert hopes to have a new director in place soon so she has time to show them the ropes and introduce them to as many people as possible before officially retiring Sept. 30.
“I want someone who will provide nourishment for the physical, emotional and social needs of everyone connected with the kitchen,” she said.
While Ebbert has high expectations of the next director, she expects nothing less from the person who will be tapped to carry on the vital role the soup kitchen plays in serving more than 200 meals a day.
The ideal candidate will see that the kitchen is about so much more than simply serving food, she said.
“Bring the experience of opening your heart to go from laughing hysterically to hugging and crying with those who need consolation. Bring the experience of opening your mind to step out of your comfort zone by asking people to donate their time, talent and treasure to help another human being,” Ebbert stated.
“Bring the experience of acceptance that your work will never be done but it will always be good. Finally, keep your sense of humor, practice patience, and explore every avenue possible to keep Kenneth Butler Memorial Soup Kitchen sustainable and thriving.”
The past few years have been exceptionally busy for the soup kitchen – housed in a red brick building at 202 E. Main Street, just east of downtown.
More than 200 meals are served there each day, which is 28% more than this same time last year.
One fourth of those meals are eaten onsite while the rest are served to-go, a concept which sprouted from necessity at the onset of COVID.
“We are serving both ways because we can reach so many more families,” said Ebbert.
The soup kitchen serves lunch from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and dinner from 5-7 p.m. weekdays, and offers brown bag lunches for the weekend. About 100 sack lunches are distributed each week.
Ebbert said it’s been astonishing to see how the number of patrons has grown since the soup kitchen first opened in 2009.
“We had five people on the first day and one of them was my husband because I was afraid nobody would come in. They all sat as far apart from each other as they could, ate as fast as they could and shot out the door. Fast forward to today and we’re serving 200-plus meals daily,” she said.
The numbers really peaked last June, when the kitchen was serving nearly 5,000 meals that month.
“It was the first time I actually ran out of hamburger and pasta since opening,” said Ebbert, the kitchen’s first and only director.
She plans to retire from the kitchen Sept. 30, which marks the 15th anniversary of the day she first came to work there.
The soup kitchen opened Oct. 12, 2009, less than two weeks after she was hired.
Ebbert said serving as the soup kitchen’s director has been “the greatest blessing God has given me since the birth of my daughter. You quickly get your priorities in order as you literally witness miracles happening continuously,” she said.
“I’m extremely proud that we serve without judgment, accepting and loving people right where they are.”
