Seeing the Need
My name is Hank Workman. I’m a business owner downtown at The Mercantile, and I’m also a pastor here in Columbia City. In 2009, I started The Warehouse Church with a simple but lofty goal: we wanted to be a church that made a difference. We wanted to meet people exactly where they were.
At first, I didn’t even think poverty was an issue in Whitley County. I really didn’t see it. But then my eyes started opening.
I’d be driving through Columbia City and suddenly notice things that stopped me in my tracks. I saw someone walking down Main Street pushing a shopping cart full of clothes. That’s big city stuff. You didn’t see that here. You never saw that here. And yet, I was seeing it. Again and again. Once I noticed it, I couldn’t unsee it.
At that point, our church didn’t even have a building. We were nomadic—meeting wherever we could. Sometimes we gathered in apartment community rooms, sometimes at the 4-H Museum. We made it work. But more than anything, I felt this growing pull that we needed to meet people who were struggling financially. People who were poor. People who were quietly hurting.
One night, everything changed.
The Nudge
We had just gotten a report that the church had basically no money. I wasn’t being paid at all. I was working as an apartment manager at Northridge Apartments and doing banquet work at the Marriott just to make ends meet. Standing in front of about 40 people, I almost didn’t say what was on my heart, but I did.
I told them, “I feel like we need to start a feeding program.”
We didn’t have a kitchen. We didn’t have a space. We didn’t have equipment. We didn’t have a plan. We didn’t have a pot to cook in. We had nothing, except the idea.
And that small church said, “We’ll do it. We’ll feed them.”
As we were leaving that night, carrying our things out into the dark, something happened that I’ll never forget. An older man came walking around the corner with what looked like a tree branch for a walking stick. He looked dirty. He looked like someone experiencing homelessness. He reminded me of people I had encountered on mission trips in big cities—people you don’t expect to see here.
He asked what was going on inside. I told him we had been having church and that we were talking about starting a feeding program, but we didn’t have any money and didn’t know how we were going to do it.
He looked at me and said, “If God has called you to do it, He will provide. You need to step into this.”
I thanked him and even offered him food, but he declined. I walked from the door to my car, just a few steps. When I turned back around, he was gone. Completely gone. People were standing there watching the whole thing unfold, and he had vanished out of thin air. I never saw him again.
That moment was the nudge we needed, especially because once we stepped into it, we ran into obstacle after obstacle.
Health department regulations. Finding a suitable kitchen. Getting everything up to Grade A standards. It felt overwhelming at times. But then the miracles started showing up.
Cebollas in Fort Wayne heard that we were starting a feeding program and donated their four-bay sink. We only needed a three-bay sink—but we got a four-bay. That was just one of many moments where we felt like God was saying, “Keep going.”
The Forklift is Born
In November 2010, The Forklift officially opened its doors as a dine-in program. We served homemade meals to people in a space where they could sit, enjoy, and connect. Inside dining was wonderful. We got to know the people. We shared stories, laughter, and sometimes tears. People formed connections. In fact, a couple who were struggling financially met at The Forklift. They dated, fell in love, and I had the privilege of officiating their wedding on Christmas Eve in my own home. That’s the kind of community that grew from those meals.
Everything we did was homemade, no cold sandwiches, no shortcuts—just full plates of care. And just as important—no questions asked, no strings attached. We didn’t ask about income. We didn’t care what car someone drove. Our mantra has always been, “Here’s a little bit of Jesus for you. We’re going to love people where they are and let Jesus do the rest.”
Then COVID hit.
Adapting and Continuing the Mission
We couldn’t continue dine-in, but we also couldn’t stop feeding people. So we shifted to carryout meals. We cooked and packaged meals so families could eat for multiple nights. We worked tirelessly, sometimes cooking all day to feed families three nights in a row. Even during the pandemic, we adapted so that no one went hungry.
We eventually found a home at The Center for Whitley County, who graciously allows us to use their kitchen and space for free. We don’t pay rent. We don’t pay utilities. Their generosity made it possible to continue serving, even in the hardest times.
Everything we do is volunteer-run. Our cooks arrive around 8:30 in the morning and stay until about 5:30 in the evening. They prep on weekends and plan weeks ahead. None of them are paid. On Mondays, volunteers arrive around 3:30 to help package meals and prepare for distribution. Thanks to an incredible system and faithful people, we can serve hundreds of meals in under 45 minutes.
Meals are served every Monday from 4:30–5:30 PM as carryout. People can pre-order through The Forklift’s Facebook page using SignUpGenius, or they can simply drive up and ask for what they need. Walk-ups are always welcome. If someone needs five meals, they get five meals. No one is turned away.
During COVID, we adapted, but today, the need continues to grow. In November alone, we served over 1,400 meals. Some weeks, we’re serving nearly 300 people in one night—families, seniors, individuals who never thought they’d need help, and people just trying to make it through the week.
This all started because I realized poverty exists here—right here in our community—and we couldn’t ignore it. As long as there’s a need, we’ll keep showing up.
The Forklift is currently located inside The Center for Whitley County Youth at 201 Market Street, Columbia City, IN 46725. Meals are served every Monday at 4:30 PM. If you or someone you know is in need of a meal, please visit The Forklift Facebook page for sign up details.
