06/13/2026
TOMORROW IS THE DAY!
Celebrating 5,000 guests at Cumberland Community Cafe
The Cumberland Community Cafe is excited to celebrate a special milestone. During the first week of June the Cafe, located at 127 N. Centre Street, served its 5000th guest. The Cafe is planning a special lunch service on June 14th to recognize this achievement. From 11:00 – 2:00 the lunch will feature the favorite special meal of roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, fresh green beans, signature fresh baked rolls and dessert. We invite the community to come see how the Cafe has grown during the eighteen months it has been open for service. If June 14 does not work in your schedule, plan to come another time.
The Cafe is the result of many years of planning on the part of a dedicated group of community members and clergy who recognized that bringing people together over a meal serves multiple purposes – feeding community members and sharing time and space together. Based on the One World Everyone Eats model, the Cafe encourages everyone to enjoy a meal, regardless of their ability to pay. The people who come to enjoy their lunch at the Cafe, whether they eat in or take their food to go, have truly appreciated the high quality of the healthy food options. Each meal includes soup, a main course with side, dessert, and iced tea or coffee. Guests can volunteer to cover the costs of their meal, pay for their own and others’ meals, and help in other myriad ways. A diligent Board of Directors oversees the operations of the Cafe. Before even opening, the vision of the Cafe was captured most decidedly by Carl Belt and members of his team, who provided the renovation of the space on North Centre Street. The Cafe operates with a full commercial kitchen, dish room, storage space, and a dining room that seats 40. Several items from the former Manhattan Restaurant were donated to the Cafe. Dishes, cutlery, glassware, chillers and work stations in the kitchen all made it easier to have the commercial kitchen in place when the Cafe opened. Other donations came from Our Lady of the Mountains that assisted with the purchase of the refrigerator and freezer. Additional funds were provided by the Presbytery of Baltimore for the purchase of other needed equipment.
After starting with lunch service on Sundays in October 2024, the Cafe is now open for lunch Sunday through Tuesday from 11:00 – 2:00. The Community Cafe cannot operate without a large volunteer corps to help the single paid Cafe Manager, Tranell Clanton. Tranell works with all the volunteers to ensure that the Cafe runs smoothly. Cafe operations require weekly efforts to make sure items are prepared and ready for the weekly service in addition to helping operate the three days of lunch. Initial volunteers were recruited from many public events and appearances that offered the chance to learn about the Cafe and how individuals could help. The Cafe Board of Directors initiated several pop-up events that featured some of the planned food items as well as giving the community a chance to learn about the Cafe before it even opened. The faith community and service organizations have regularly provided volunteers to help with everything from chopping onions, making soups, serving during open hours, running the dish room, and cleaning so the space is ready for the next day’s service. Other organizations have sent regular volunteers who both help with daily tasks and learn important job skills. Many volunteers sign up for regular times weekly or monthly. Additional help is always needed, so please reach out if you have a group that is looking for a meaningful volunteer opportunity or you would like to help out yourself. The Community Cafe – Cumberland website has contact information and volunteer sign-up forms you can complete. www.cumberlandcommunitycafe.org
The Cafe has seen several achievements since opening. The current highlight is recognizing that the Cafe has served over 5000 guests. This is truly a wonderful event and the Board felt it deserved a special lunch and recognition in the community. The Cafe also appreciates the collaboration with First Fruits Farm from eastern Maryland, which provides monthly donations of produce and other items to nonprofits that assist in eliminating hunger across the state. During the growing season this partnership has provided the Cafe with countless fresh vegetables and fruits that are processed and frozen for later use. The cost savings from this donation has been quite large and assists the Cafe in planning healthy menus each week. The members of the Board of Directors also enjoy serving up a fun Santa breakfast each year in conjunction with other local restaurants that also spread holiday cheer with breakfast with Santa for area children and families.
The Cafe partners with the Allegany County Farmers Market, thanks to one of the Cafe Board members, Allison Boyd. Together with the Farmers Market, the Cafe held a large multi-course fundraiser dinner in August 2025. The menu highlighted dishes that are served at the Cafe and featured the fresh produce from the farmers.
In 2026 the Cafe has started its Fifth Sunday Supper themed fundraiser dinners. If a month has five Sundays, there will be a special dinner (advertised on the Cafe page or Instagram). So far this year, the March dinner featured an Italian feast and the dinner just completed in May featured a multi-course Indian meal. The Cafe is looking forward to hosting the community for the August Fifth Sunday Supper that will highlight Greek food. Everyone involved with making the Cafe an enjoyable lunch option for the Cumberland community has been glad that they have been part of something so unique and special. Come see for yourself.
