The Franciscan Center of Baltimore

06/20/2026

Culinary Class #16 in action on Thursday.
The theme of this lunch was Soup, Salad and Sandwiches.

This class has officially completed 8 weeks of training.

The menu:
Watermelon Salad
White Gazpacho with almonds and grapes
Roasted tomato basil soup
French Onion Soup
Shrimp Po Boys
Pulled chicken with Jack Daniel's BBQ Sauce and cabbage coleslaw

Beef skirt sliders with beef bacon jam and chimichurri and arugula

Open face crab cake sandwich on a chive and cheddar biscuit

With a ginger and peace tea and carrot cake

Everything cooked from scratch

**** We are currently recruiting for Culinary Training Class 17 and for our 2nd Night Class.


cooking

06/18/2026

Today we are celebrating Fathers Day at our center. We have a special meal and special giveaways. We also have 3 barbers on site to give haircuts.

On the menu:
Ribs
Shrimp and grits
Chicken thighs and wings
Corn on the Cob
Mac and cheese
Fresh farm salad
Corn bread
Strawberry shortcake

We have a large volunteer team with us today including a large group from BG&E.

We are serving until 1pm.

The Franciscan Center
101 West 23rd St
Baltimore, MD 21218

06/16/2026

Today we hosted our June FoodRx Cooking Demo in honor of Fathers Day. Our Chef today was Chef Key and on the menu was a delicious and healthy Chile and Cornbread.

All of the ingredients to create the meal can be found in our Community Choice Pantry.

** Food Rx is a MedStar Health program.
A no cost 6 month program that helps people with diabetes to:
1. Improve blood sugar control and lower hemoglobin A1c
2. Lose undesired weight
3. Improve diabetes self management and coping skills

Participants will:
1. Meet with a registered Dietitan every 2 weeks.
2. Receive diabetes education focused on healthy eating
3. Receive nutrition support bi-weekly
4. Have access to Community Organizations that will help individuals with getting health insurance, healthy food, and so much more.

06/16/2026

Wine at the Shrine: A Festival for Little Portion Farm & Franciscan Center - October 10th.

Put a big circle around October 10th at join us at The Shrine of Anthony which is the best place to host a festival.

This festival supporters the work of not only our center but a partners in ministry at Little Portion Farm.

Early Bird ticket prices are now through August 18.

Buy your tickets at www.wineattheshrine.org

We are so excited to announce that Wine at the Shrine will be on Saturday, October 10th from 1pm to 6pm at the The Shrine of St. Anthony

What this festival supports:
Wine at the Shrine is a unique event benefitting two wonderful organizations (Little Portion Farm and The Franciscan Center of Baltimore) working in collaboration to assist the most vulnerable in our community and to care for the earth.

This partnership allows us to provide thousands of pounds of fresh, local produce to those who are most in need, and often lack access to these foods. We believe that social, economic, and environmental health are deeply intertwined, which is why we are working together to provide economically disadvantaged individuals and families in Baltimore with healthy food grown in healthy soil.

Early Bird Ticket Prices are active from now until August 31st.
www.wineattheshrine.org

06/15/2026

June 15th

Let us help you start the week off on the right foot.

Tomorrow is MedStar Monday. MedStar's Mobile Health Center will be with us from 10am till 4pm.

Tomorrow is also our monthly Baby Resource Day in partnership with Sharebaby.

Thursday we are celebrating Fathers Day with a special meal and gifts.

Please share !

06/13/2026

The St. Anthony Festival at the Shrine of St. Anthony today until 4pm.

Come on out to the festival and stop by our table for lunch and say Hi to our culinary team.

Another great spot to check out is our partners in ministry and service... Little Portion Farm.

06/12/2026

Now Recruiting !!
We are searching for individuals who are motivated, passionate and determined to follow their dreams and become a Chef !

We are recruiting for our #17 Culinary Class (Day Time) and our #2 Night Class.

To apply for our Dignity Plates Culinary Training Academy go to:
https://www.fcbmore.org/culinary-academy/

Day Program
Dates: August 17, 2026 – November 13, 2026
Schedule: Monday–Friday, 9:00 AM–2:00 PM
Length: 13 weeks

Night Program (Hybrid)
Dates: September 14, 2026 – November 6, 2026
Schedule: Monday–Wednesday, 5:00 PM–9:00 PM
Length: 8 weeks
Includes both in-person and online learning components.

06/12/2026

The Franciscan Center - www.fcbmore.org

Match Challenge Alert !!

Make a difference now & your gift will be MATCHED

Thanks to a generous family ALL donations from June 12th through July 31st will be MATCHED up to $16,000 !!!

Please consider making a donation today. The next 50 days is the best time to make a donation to our Center to support the work we do everyday.

Every week we are serving hundreds of our neighbors who are in need of help. Our center can provide healthy pantry food, fresh prepared meals, clothing, hygiene items and HOPE.

As summer arrives we will see more and more of our neighbors. As schools close for the summer we will see another increase in the number of guests we serve.

We need your help.

We need to restock our pantry shelves, bring in more fresh fruits and vegetables and obtain more clothing and hygiene items. Some of these items will come in by clothing drives and food drives but we know that donations, money, will have to be spent to buy these items.

PLEASE MAKE A GIFT NOW.

Thank you!

The staff and volunteers of the Franciscan Center

www.fcbmore.org

06/11/2026

Every Thursday we open our community client choice pantry to Everyone and the need for this critical service is in high demand.

Today our community client choice pantry served 121 families. 121 families in just 3 hours.

Thank you to all of our volunteers, supporters, donors and staff who make this resource possible.

** If you or your organization would like to partner with us please email Angela Hall at [email protected]

06/11/2026

Here we go. Summertime in Baltimore.
Today is an Extreme Heat Alert Day.

Franciscan Center is a Cooling Center for our Community.
We all know that summers can be brutal in our City, especially on summer days when the temperatures reach the high 90s.

When our City is expecting high temperatures combined with high humidity and the combination makes it feel more than 100 degrees, the City Health Department declares a CODE Red. At that point, city departments will highlight through the media where Cooling Stations are located for anyone and everyone.

For many years our center has been a Cooling Center for our city and is recognized by the City for this work.

What does a Cooling Center mean to us and you?
Doors open at 10am and we have volunteers passing out bottle waters the entire time we are open.
When possible we serve NON hot meal items.
We offer salads at every meal.
We let our guests just sit and rest.
When possible, we extend our hours.