MISSION POSSIBLE is a book with a simple purpose: to spur the development of new soup kitchens where they are needed

The book and the website are underwritten by the Tuchman Foundation, headed by Martin Tuchman, the conceiver of the project and one of the book’s co-authors.

The book contains 14 chapters and 4 appendices. Each chapter is composed of two sections: a two to three page overview of the subject followed by a list of tips, guides to some of the more subtle operations of a soup kitchen.

The book is organized in chronological fashion. It will take you from very conceptual considerations to relatively detailed instructions on the most common challenges you will face. In all cases, our essential goal has been to be practical and helpful.

Since the books release in July 2011 and its availability as a downloadable file, individuals in all 50 states and more than 150 different countries have downloaded the book.

Latest News & Events

Accepting Dirt from Foreign Nations is Unpatriotic and Illegal
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

Back in January, I wrote that “As we approach the 2020 election, I expect to see Donald Trump embrace an increasingly racist xenophobic and economic nationalistic populist message … I look for President Trump to turn-up and increasingly target his rhetoric towards our nation’s aging white population.”

Should CC Sabathia be in the Baseball Hall of Fame?
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

Throughout the 150 year history of baseball there have been more than 19,000 players. Around 1% of them eventually make it to the Hall of Fame (HOF). This column will take a look at C C Sabathia’s 19-year career and evaluate his Coopertown credentials and render a judgment as to whether the thirty-seven-year-old New York Yankee pitcher should be admitted to the HOF.

The 2020 Election - A Referendum on Socialism vs. Capitalism
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

The President, his son Eric, Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity are hard at work painting the Democratic Party as a collection of crazy radical Socialists who are out of touch with main street America and who are hell bent on destroying capitalism as we know it. In the past, this would have been a surefire winning strategy. I’m not so sure that is the case today.”

Joe Biden's response to Kamala Harris falls short
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

I’ve never been enamored with Joe Biden. I’ve always thought that from a public policy perspective, he was “a little lite” – not a policy wonk. After reading a book by a former aide, Jeff Connaugthon, entitled, The Payoff, which portrays Biden in an unflattering light by presenting various embarrassing anecdotes and examples of Uncle Joe being unwilling to help his own staff, I’ve come to see Joe Biden as more of a Washington compiler than a change agent.

Times are a Changing in Baseball and Politics
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

Baseball is fast becoming a hit or miss sport. Either the batter hits a home run or he strikes out. This past year the Bronx Bombers broke the all-time record for home runs with 267 and for the first time in baseball history, there were more strikeouts (41,207) than hits (41,119). More home runs were hit this past June than any month in baseball history (1,142 vs. 1,119 in August 2017). At the current pace of an average of 2.73 home runs per game, we are on pace to see a record 6,624 home runs.

The Democratic debates were civil but short on solutions
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

Two issues that got considerable attention in the Democratic debates were gun safety and what to do about migrant children held at the border. In both cases, the candidates were too cautious and didn’t break any new ground.

Trump’s fundamental strategy - divide and conquer
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

The United States of America has increasingly become the Divided State of America under President Donald Trump. President Trump has expended almost no effort or political capital on healing our nation’s divisive wounds or finding common ground. Instead, he picks at the scabs on a daily basis with the hope that infections will spread and solidify his base.

Elizabeth Warren - The candidate with lots of big ideas
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

Early presidential polls and early presidential debates are rarely predictive of the eventual outcome. However, they often provide clues as to the outcome. In a recent Des Moines Register/CNN poll, Vice President Joe Biden was the front runner with 24%, followed by Sen. Bernie Sanders at 16%, Sen. Elizabeth Warren at 15%, Mayor Pete Buttigieg at 14% and Sen. Kamala Harris at 7%. No other candidate, including our own Sen. Booker, had more than 2%. The big surprise of various state and national polls has been the surge of Elizabeth Warren. She also recently came in second in polls in California, Nevada and South Carolina). Warren, the candidate with the big ideas, is getting early traction and will be helped by her solid performance in the first Presidential Debate.

We must not allow Russia to pervert our elections
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

In 2016 election, the Russian decided that it would be to their benefit to elect Donald Trump and worked to secure that result. They perverted our presidential election process and threatened the integrity of our voting system.

Senate Bill 845: A New Jersey Approach to Unplanned, Unintended Pregnancies
The Trentonian Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

There appears to be a race on to see which conservative state can pass the most extreme abortion law in the nation. The immediate goal of these laws is to prompt the Supreme Court to consider the legality of each state establishing restrictions on abortions. The long-term goal is to overturn the landmark Roe vs. Wade decision in which the Supreme Court ruled that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the Constitution provides a fundamental “right to privacy” that protects a pregnant woman’s liberty to choose whether or not to have an abortion.

Editorial: Proposed cuts to food program are immoral
By NCR Editorial Staff

Sometimes it feels hard to keep up with the myriad scandals swirling around the Trump White House. From alleged payoffs to a porn star and ongoing inquiries into Russian involvement in the 2016 presidential election, the headlines come at a dizzying pace. The lurid spectacle of it all should not blind us to actual policy scandals that make a mockery of the administration's laughable claim to being "pro-life."

Op-Ed: Drastic SNAP Cuts Would Be Devastating Domestic Disaster
The Times of Trenton Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

In New Jersey, some 850,000 people receive more than $1 billion annually from SNAP to help buy food. Converting the program to a block grant would slash funds

Hunger affects one out of seven American men, woman, and children. Some 42.2 million Americans live in food-insecure households, including more than 13 million children. For this reason, America faces a potentially devastating domestic malnutrition disaster if the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly known as the Food Stamp program) is converted to a block grant program and funding is slashed by $150 billion over 10 years.

With Money So Tight, We Need to Get Rid of Poor-Performing Charities
The Times of Trenton Newapaper
By Irwin Stoolmacher

America faces a potentially devastating domestic disaster the likes of which we have not seen in our history. As more and more charities seek money to deal with escalating problems, private support is stagnant and government money is on the decline.

A recent message received on the Mission Possible website from a Social Worker in Rhode Island

I saw your book advertised in the SUNY Binghamton Alumni News. I am a clinical social worker living in Rhode Island. Part of what I do here is run a transitional house for homeless adults. The Board and I are meeting shortly to consider new projects that we might undertake, as services for caring for the homeless population have undergone some shifts which have presented us with new challenges.

Book receives praise from South Africa

I just want to say thank you for the book. I'm based in South Africa and working with the Ward Councillor who wants to start several soup kitchens for his community. Thank You!

Archived News

Glowing Praise for Mission Possible:

"In these rough and tumble times, when the number of our neighbors who are hungry, or who are coming up short during any given month continues to escalate, the publishing of Mission Possible could not be more timely. The authors have done a great job of taking what was learned at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK) and used that base to build a bold "soup kitchen primer". If you want to start a kitchen, make yours more powerful or just learn more, then this is a great introduction. If you see need in your community, don’t wait…read this book, get involved, step UP…we need your help." - Robert L.E. Egger President, DC Central Kitchen Campus Kitchens Project/V3 Campaign

"This is the best and most complete guide that I have ever seen for anyone considering beginning a soup kitchen. Step by step it will guide - it covers everything - but it is so much more. For those soup kitchens ready to do more than provide a meal, this is a guide for you too. Food banks across the country are actively involved in building the capacity of the charities they serve. This is a great tool for doing just that." - Kathleen F. DiChiara | President and CEO |Community Food Bank of New Jersey

"Working in a soup kitchen is one the hardest yet most fulfilling tasks. Most, soup kitchen work is holy work. It’s God’s work. Of course, we need to abolish hunger, poverty, war and nuclear weapons, but as we work for justice, we need to feed our hungry neighbors, for they are God in disguise. This book shows us how to do that. It’s helpful, immediately practical and encouraging. I hope it inspires many people to feed the hungry." - Rev. John Dear, author, The Question of Jesus and A Persistent Peace

"Mission Possible is important and unfortunately most relevant for the simple but urgent fact that growing numbers of Americans go hungry due to the lack of money to purchase food. The authors are well respected leaders in the community with recognized skills and competence in the non-profit sector. This book is an outstanding overview of how to establish or enhance the functioning of Soup Kitchens, using the best practices of non-profit management." - Fran Dolan, Former Executive Director, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Trenton

"Mission Possible is a practical, deeply inspiring guide filled with basic information on how to start a soup kitchen. It is needed now more than ever." - Loretta Schwartz-Nobel, Author, Growing Up Empty: How Federal Policies are Starving America’s Children; Starving in the Shadow of Plenty

"Almost everyone wants to do something to make a difference. Visionary leaders of the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (T.A.S.K) have made a huge difference in the lives of their patrons and in those of us who have been privileged to work with them. Mission Possible is about the best practices that have changed peoples' lives for the better through a soup kitchen. Here's the model. Make a difference!" - E. Roy Riley, Bishop, New Jersey Synod, ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America)

Want us to Speak at Your Event?

Authors Irwin Stoolmacher and Peter Wise are available to speak at your next conference or event.

Presentation Topics

Soup Kitchens: Band-Aid or Solution?
Are Soup Kitchen's Still Relevant?
How to Start a Soup Kitchen.
Soup Kitchens: Part of the problem or part of the solution?

Learn More

About the Authors

Irwin S. Stoolmacher, Martin Tuchman & Peter C. Wise have more than thirty-five years of in the trenches experience working with the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK).

Download Now

Download the entire book (PDF, 5.78 MB) complete with artwork.

How You Can Start and Operate a Soup Kitchen

MISSION POSSIBLE is a book with a simple purpose: to spur the development of new soup kitchens where they are needed