Brewing Friendship: Portraits of Seniors in a Tight-Knit Community
The Meals on Wheels Friendship Cafe at Redeeming Love Missionary Baptist Church connects people who have become friends, even family by Katherine Snow Smith | photography by Jillian Clark
Daisy and Junetta have known each other since their days at Fuller Elementary in Raleigh. And they still get to see each other most days — now, as part of a tight-knit community of 15 to 20 seniors who gather for lunch at the Meals on Wheels Friendship Cafe at Redeeming Love Missionary Baptist Church.
“When you come here, you know you’re cared about,” says Anthony, a church member who was asked to come unlock the doors to the fellowship hall a few years ago. “And I never left!” Meals on Wheels of Wake County hosts 10 Friendship Cafes, serving lunch and offering programming for 300 people, Monday through Friday. Anyone 60 or older, regardless of income, is welcome. At Friendship Cafes, it’s also about connecting people who become friends, even family.
“Meals on Wheels is much more than a meal,” says Amy Akroyd, assistant director of development and communications for MOW. The organization is best known for delivering hot food to homebound seniors — in Wake County, they visit 1,100 residents every day. While those recipients get a burst of one-on-one connection, Friendship Cafes offer it in large supply. Doors open at 9:30 a.m., programming starts at 10 a.m. and friends dine after that.
Eloise Best is the site manager for the Redeeming Love Friendship Cafe and has worked for Meals on Wheels for 12 years. She arranges games and activities for the seniors, as well as speakers to talk about relevant topics, such as how to avoid scams and advice about estate planning. She also organizes a popular Spades and Dominos tournament against the Raleigh Police Department and Raleigh Fire Department. “They are so fun, they come every year,” says Deborah, another frequent Friendship Cafe guest. “They say they want to come all the time — and we have to remind them they aren’t old enough.”
Photographer Jillian Clark visited the Redeeming Love Friendship Cafe recently to take portraits of some of its regular guests.
Mae was despondent after her husband Percy died a few years ago, so her daughter encouraged her to try out the Friendship Cafe at church. “The first day, I fell in love with it and started coming every day,” she says. “I knew I was going to miss something if I didn’t show up.” She always wears an outfit with a little flair because some there call her “the dressing-est thing they ever saw.
Katie has fished all her life, in bodies of water from small ponds and creeks to Topsail Beach. She remembers catching crickets and worms for bait as a child. Her trophy fish, pictured here, weighed in at 2 pounds 14 ounces. “I love the people here,” she says of Friendship Cafe. “It’s somewhere to go every day.”
Henry first saw his wife Gena 25 years ago. “She was dressed all in blue. Everything matched. And I said: That’s my girl right there,” he recalls. They usually sit at different tables for dining and programs. “That’s the purpose. We are together most of the time,” Gena says, chuckling. “This way we are together, but not together.” “Sometimes you have to take time apart,” Henry agrees. “But she’s still my girl.”
After Dorothy W.’s husband died in 2022, she started shopping every day just to leave the home that was so empty without him. “I was running from store to store, not for any particular things I needed, just to get out of the house,” she says. “I came over here to see what it was all about. I’m a regular now. I come every day. It keeps my mind busy.”
When Linda joined the group two years ago, someone asked her if she lived alone. “I said, Why, because I talk all the time? And she said, Yeah, that’s it. I thought that was so funny,” she recalls. “We laugh so much here.” The Buffalo native thinks Buffalo Brothers in Raleigh makes wings like her favorite spot back home. “Somebody there is from Buffalo and knows how to make wings like they do at La Nova.”
Deborah, who used to be a lobbyist in Boston, heard about Friendship Cafe through her cousin after moving here. She loves meeting new people and learning about all the different experiences people had growing up, whether in New York or North Carolina. “This is a place that stimulates your mind and it’s about friendship,” she says.
A dyed-in-the-wool Wolfpack fan, Dorothy T. worked at NC State for 32 years before retiring from her job as a cashier at the Atrium Food Court in 2008. She treasures her university friends and has photos of her sendoff party ready to share. Friendship Cafe offers her another family and keeps her busy. “We’ve learned how to make lap quilts and made jewelry,” she says.
Before enjoying Friendship Cafe, James says all he was doing was sitting on his porch. Now he loves playing cards and giving the crowd a chuckle when he calls Bingo. “I say I-19 in a real high voice, then I say it again and put the bass in it,” he says.
Sylvia started coming to Friendship Cafe three years ago. “They tell me I’m the youngest one at the table. I tell them: Y’all keep me rolling, laughing every day. They are really open, that’s what I like about everybody here,” she says. Eloise is always looking for new activities, so Sylvia found a good word search game. “We like everything as long as there’s no algebra in it,” Sylvia says, laughing.
Eloise Best is the site manager for the Redeeming Love Friendship Cafe. Guests sing her praises: “Eloise gets the best speakers,” “Eloise is always looking for new games,” “Eloise, puts the ‘friend’ in Friendship Cafe,” they say.
This article originally appeared in the November 2025 issue of WALTER magazine.
