History Highlights

  • 1984 - Iron Gate begins with Trinity parishioners and others meeting weekly to prepare 400 sandwiches. The Tulsa Club kitchen contributes a half-bushel of bread.
     
  • 1986 - Trinity begins a Pledge-a-Veg campaign to collect donated food. Holland Hall and the Boy Scouts begin food drives. Iron Gate expands to include weekday hot meals and groceries.
     
  • 1992 - The Zarrow Foundation awards a $50,000 grant to renovate a room in Trinity's basement as a street feeding area.
     
  • 1997 - The Iron Gate Trust is established as a 501(c)(3) not for profit organization. Corporate and foundation contributions include: Williams Companies, Amoco, Mapco, Sisk Charitable Trust, Bowman Family Charitable Fund and Kaiser Foundation.
     
  • 2001 - Trinity parishioners raise $18,000 to provide janitorial service for Iron Gate, so toilet facilities can be provided. The Zarrow Foundation donates $36,000 for expansion of the street feeding area and to help underwrite the salary of a professional director.
     
  • 2002 - Iron Gate hires a director, an additional feeding room is opened, and updates are made to the main feeding room including additional counters, new flooring, a bigger sink, and newly painted walls. All of these things were made possible by the grant from the Zarrow foundation.
     
  • 2007 - Iron Gate raises $300,000 for a new space with 3,305 square feet.  The state of the art location has all new equipment including a hand washing station, men's and women's toilets, a special heating/ac system to prevent the spread of TB/airborne diseases, a new entrance with outdoor eating space, new pantry and a new serving kitchen.
     
  • 2009 - Iron Gate accepts full responsibility for managing the kitchen at Trinity and for its expenses of bookkeeping and financial services. To meet the growing need for services, Iron Gate expands hot meals to weekends, adds Saturdays to grocery assistance and opens its Kid's Cupboard to provide healthy snack packs for children.
     
  • 2010 - Iron Gate begins to deepen its mission of feeding the hungry through work with Youth Services of Tulsa, Day Spring Villa, and other agencies by making sure that those who are hungry, no matter their income or age, receive much needed groceries and a hot meal.