Davenport couple offers free meals to build community

That’s the bare minimum of what JD and Marideth DeSalvo hope to provide with their free meals – “Dinner with The DeSalvos” – every Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m. The dinners are held on the property behind their little business, “The Hippie Life,” a “hippie-style” clothing, art and gift shop/boutique at 3119 Brady Street in Davenport.

“It’s such a beautiful thing,” JD said on Thursday, also referring in true hippie fashion to the 55th anniversary of Woodstock.

The DeSalvos began hosting these free community meals three weeks ago as part of their nonprofit organization, The Home of Grace, which supports people in need of “any kind of assistance,” but the idea came about spontaneously.

“We literally thought of this on a Saturday and the next day we did it,” JD said. “It’s about fun and community.”

“It’s not about us helping everyone,” he added. “It’s about everyone helping everyone.”

The DeSalvos’ thrift store, Gabby’s Treasures (housed in The Hippie Life), funds most of the weekly food costs. Community members can also donate food in bulk or bring a ready-to-serve dish to share.

“They bring us stuff, we cook it,” JD said Thursday while serving walking tacos. “We’re the middleman … and everyone gets some of what’s available.”

So far, the DeSalvos say, guest numbers at their weekly dinners typically fluctuate between 35 and 55 — but for them, the greatest reward is seeing the number of tables “grow and grow” as the evening progresses.

“We start with two or three people,” JD said. “Then we see people on the phone and (later) the grandkids come, maybe some neighbors, and it’s like a little party. That’s what we want.”

As parents of four children – and now grandparents of four more – the DeSalvos know how expensive grocery shopping can be for families.

“That could be a (monthly) bill,” Marideth said.

Angel Carr lives on a fixed income because of a disability. She and her family attended dinner with the DeSalvos on Thursday.

“When you get halfway through the month, the (food) money goes up,” Carr said. “So that helps with these prices.”

Her family donates ingredients when they can and contributes one of the dessert items for Thursday.

“It’s also nice to get to know their people and have company outside of our home,” Carr said. “It also helps provide more food for other people.”

Marideth plans to launch a GoFundMe campaign soon to expand Dinner with The DeSalvos – and to make it mobile.

“Many people need food deliveries,” she said. “So we are trying to raise enough money to buy a vehicle that is reliable enough to get the food to the people who can’t come to us.”

Guests at DeSalvos can bring their meals to go, eat in The Hippie Life’s refurbished bus or its art shed, where the nonprofit’s “creative therapy” sessions take place, or enjoy communal outdoor seating.

Xavier Christian of Davenport decided to eat his walking taco at the art shed.

“I can’t say no to good food,” he said. “I met JD a while back when I was going through a rough time. I started helping him with little projects here and there and it became kind of my little ‘thing’… I didn’t want to be out there doing anything crazy, you know?”

He described the DeSalvos as “a safe haven.”

Security—and more importantly, a sense of family—is exactly what JD and Marideth aim to provide through their small business and nonprofit ventures. And for some, they have done just that.

“They’re just a blessing to people,” Christian said. “I love JD to death… to the point where I took him to meet my mom the other day.”

When he’s not working shifts at the RiverCenter, Christian still helps the DeSalvos with occasional projects.

“It’s kind of my good deed for today,” he said. “Everything here (Hippie Life/Home of Grace) is just great.”

Tayja Clayton and Lee Ford decided to eat on the bus. Ford also said JD was a help in difficult times.

“He’s helped me in a lot of personal times,” Ford said. “Being here has helped me a lot, too.”

Ford and Clayton visit The Hippie Life frequently and say they appreciate being able to rely on the community to provide them with a free, delicious meal each week.

“They (DeSalvos) want to take care of everyone around them, young and old,” Clayton said. “It’s really a nice feeling to know that someone has your back like that.”

Marideth said that people who may need a free meal one night often come back later with donations when they are “better.” Or, like Christian, they help in any way they can.

“It’s really a beautiful circle,” she said. “No matter what your situation is, we’re here to try to help… and if we can’t, we’ll try to find the person who can.”

While the DeSalvos continue their weekly dinners, Marideth hopes to continue to grow The Home of Grace.

“We really want to evolve,” she said, such as hosting more weekly events and starting a women’s shelter in the future. “We’re just trying to make what we have run smoothly … just make everything nicer and finish some (internal) projects.”

Another focus for the DeSalvos in the future will be raising funds and applying for grants.

In the meantime, they continue to do what they do best: help people. Especially those who need it.

“You really get to see and get to know people who just need a little help,” JD said near her Brady Street location. “All of these people are incredible.”

For more information about The Home of Grace, visit the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/thehomeofgrace/ or email [email protected].