While serving a welfare self-reliance mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Eastern Idaho, David Merrill noticed the lack of services offering hot meals to those in need in the Rexburg area.
“Rexburg has some amazing food pantries, but there was nowhere to go to get a free hot ready to eat meal,” Merrill said. “Food insecurity is a real problem in our country, and right here in Madison County is no different.”
Seeing the need, Merrill worked to start his own non-profit in Rexburg in April 2025. The greatest obstacle Merrill sees facing the Rexburg Soup Kitchen is informing the community. He said the elderly and people without access to social media are some who don’t know about the Soup Kitchen.
“So, getting the word out and making people aware of what we do and when we're open,” Merrill said.
Merrill has worked with the Health and Welfare Department, the Rexburg Free Clinic and other agencies and food banks in the area to help spread the word.
“We've worked really hard to work through them to make sure that their patrons know of our services,” he said.
In addition to providing weekly hot meals, the Rexburg Soup Kitchen also can connect those in need with organizations that can help in other areas of necessity.
“We have a table full of information that every week we bring a new partner in, a new human service partner, to make our patrons aware of what they can tap into so that they're not going through this difficult time or this short-term period without getting all the resources they need,” Merrill said.
The Rexburg Soup Kitchen also has a food pantry of dry and canned goods available for patrons to select what they need. The Rexburg Soup Kitchen is currently holding its “Souper-Bowl Food Drive” seeking donations of specific items for the pantry. Items include:
- Tuna fish (in water)
- Snack-size fruit cups
- Beef stew
- Canned pasta (ravioli, SpaghettiOs)
- Chili with meat
- Chicken noodle soup
- Vegetable beef soup
- Mac & cheese
- Ramen noodles
- 2 lb bags of white rice
All donations can be left at the Rexburg Soup Kitchen Building 480 W. 2nd N. in Rexburg, on Saturday, Feb. 7 between 10 a.m. – noon. More information about the Rexburg Soup Kitchen’s operating schedule, volunteer opportunities, and donations can be found on the Soup Kitchen’s website. Home | Rexburg Soup Kitchen