This month kickstarted the free lunch program hosted by the greater Love Deliverance Church in Walden, and orchestrator Bishop Troy Johnson could be seen holding “Free Lunch” signs outside to draw people in.

The program began July 5. The goal is to offer free lunches and games for students living in Montgomery, including the Villages of Walden, Maybrook and Montgomery. For the rest of July, the free lunch program will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays from noon to 2 p.m.

Now that the free lunch program has seen its first few days, Bishop Johnson is excited to see it grow even more traction. They had a few families come and play air hockey, chess, ping pong and more, with the hit being air hockey. “The kids have been coming in and they’ve been having a ball. They are going crazy over Air Hockey,” said Bishop Johnson.

Bishop Johnson mentioned that outside of the game cornhole, which is outdoors alongside the building, they’ve had to make some changes to get into the gaming groove.

“We converted the church into a game room ministry now. Half of the chairs in the sanctuary are moved to the right and that’s our ping pong zone. We have one room which is our air hockey and then we have another zone which is our chess zone. That’s in the foyer of the church as you come in,” said Bishop Johnson.

If all goes well, and they gain more traction, Bishop Johnson would like to have a ping pong, air hockey and chess tournament at the end of the summer.

“I had a young sister and brother that came and they didn’t know how to play ping pong or chess, so I actually taught them the game of ping pong and taught them the principles of the game. I told them how the chess pieces move. [After], they sat and talked with my wife and my sister-in-law, who are my helpers, and they stayed an extra two hours after that,” said Bishop Johnson.

The church, despite not being jam-packed the first week with students, ended up giving away all of the food. The menu includes turkey, ham, or salami sandwiches with cheese, as well as chips, fruit cups, water, juice and more. There are also packets of condiments.

To help with funding, Bishop Johnson has submitted letters to Hannaford, Shoprite, the Walden Rotary Club and more. Hannaford has since replied, letting him know that whatever he needed in the future wouldn’t be an issue.

Though it’s a bit early to tell, Bishop Johnson hopes to continue it into August, and is even considering adding a third day of the week to the program.

The church is located at 175 South Montgomery Street. If any further information is needed, contact Bishop Troy Johnson at (845) 313-3122.