Food warriors and thirst responders

BOLINGBROKE – It began with something to chew on.

Four words from a sermon. 

Give somebody a sandwich.

When Rabbi Greg Hershberg delivered that message on a Saturday morning at Beth Yeshua International on Price Road, Tommy Campbell caught it like a fastball over the heart of the plate.

Campbell has experience at catching. He is a former professional baseball player.

 He had questions, though. You can talk the talk, but how do you walk the walk … and slap some mustard, lettuce and pickles on that sandwich?

He turned to his friend, Travis Miller, sitting beside him in the congregation. Searching for ways to feed Macon’s downtown homeless population had been on their hearts for some time. But they didn’t know how or where to start.

“We didn’t know where it was going,’’ Campbell said. “All Travis and I wanted to do was feed the homeless once a month. You can pray and pray and pray and not do anything about it.  You’ve got to put legs on that prayer.’’

Hershberg’s sermon set the table and fired up the grill.

F.A.T. was born.

For the record, F.A.T. has nothing to do with Weight Watchers, hoarding food, expanding waistlines or counting calories. 

It stands for “Faithful. Available. Teachable.”  It is taken from scripture, Isaiah 58:10, in the Old Testament. “… if you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry,  and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday.’’

They printed those three initials on their T-shirts, and it got people’s attention. It is a conversation starter for the ministry.

Campbell and Miller, along with Ronnie Combs and Richard Smith, make up the executive board at F.A.T. Only they typically don’t follow Robert’s Rules of Order. They are not big on committees or meetings. If there is a pressing need or call to action, it can often be handled in a group text and quickly resolved. 

Food and drinks are dispensed. Checks are written.

They are Food Warriors and Thirst Responders. 

Since 2018, F.A.T. and its dedicated volunteers have been cooking and serving meals at the Weekend Lunch Program at Christ Church on Walnut Street. 

They have worked in tandem with local organizations such as the Rescue Mission of Middle Georgia, the Hot Dog Club at Lake Wildwood and the Mentor’s Project.  They have branched out to assist with fundraisers to help veterans and benefit cookouts for battered women and children.

F.A.T. has grown from pulling a large cooker behind a truck to a fleet of trucks and four trailers. The ministry operates a 2,500-square-foot building with supplies located behind Tommy Campbell’s Collision Center, a body shop on Highway 41 in Lower  Bolingbroke.

“A lot of people ask me about my itinerary during the day … what do I do?” Campbell said. “I tell them I get directions from the Lord. We have a schedule where we feed the homeless downtown. But, during the day, I have no idea who will show up at our ministry building.’’

He views it as an ongoing opportunity to feed bodies and souls … to be, as the Bible instructs us, the hands and feet of Jesus.

In recent weeks, F.A.T. has rolled up its sleeves and assisted with the relief efforts following the two devastating hurricanes that devastated the Southeast. 

With the help of one of Campbell’s neighbors, David Prim, F.A.T. dispensed trucks and trailers with everything from food and water to diapers and dog food to communities in southeast Georgia impacted by Hurricane Helene. They took supplies to McRae, Alma, Lyons, Nashville and Hazelhurst.

“They need help,’’ Campbell said. “It’s unbelievable. Trees are down everywhere. Roofs are torn off. You can’t even imagine what it looks like. It’s going to take years to get them back.’’

This past weekend, F.A.T. partnered with Jeff Youmans and Brighter Days Ministry in Milledgeville, to transport 30 generators, gas, food, water and other supplies to the Tampa area.

New doors are opening all the time. Beginning in January, Campbell said F.A.T. will expand its ministry to unserved and underserved neighborhoods and communities in Macon and Middle Georgia.

 You can feed them second and third helpings, but Campbell said you are going to have a “fat, homeless guy who is going to hell if you don’t tell him about the Lord.’’ He said it is important for the team to provide spiritual nourishment, too. They distribute free copies of the book Hershberg published last year, “Don’t Die In Your Sins,’’  which is also translated into Spanish.

Campbell is willing to give them the T-shirt off his back .. even one of those T-shirts with “F.A.T.” across the front and these words across the shoulders.

“Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care.’’

Ed Grisamore has been a newspaper columnist in Middle Georgia for more than 45 years. He is the author of nine books and received the 2024 John Holliman Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Georgia.