Hours of Operation
Iron Gate provides food for the hungry every morning,365 days a year
Weekday mornings
8:30 am to 10:30am
Weekends and Holidays
8:30 am to 10:00am
All are Welcome Here
Iron Gate serves the hungry and homeless without discrimination. Due to the present economic climate, the face of hunger and homelessness has changed. Our guests range from newborn babies to 90-year-old seniors, and often include those households with working adults, children, veterans and/or those who receive food stamp services. These are the disenfranchised of our nation who are all too often forgotten and overlooked.
Unfortunately, one in five Tulsans surveyed in a 2009 national food hardship study reported they did not have enough money to buy food at some point in the last 12 months (“Food Hardship: A Closer Look at Hunger,� FRAC, January 2010). As a state, Oklahoma has the 8th highest rate of food hardship in the nation, at 22.2%. This is up from 21.4% in 2008, reflecting the negative economic climate and the increasing difficulty families have had meeting their basic needs during the recession. Poverty is also prevalent in Tulsa and contributes to the problems of homelessness and hunger. According to the latest Census data, the poverty rate in Tulsa is 19.2%.
Guest Demographics (2006)
- 55% of our guests are Caucasian; 25% African-American and 18% Native American
- 25% of our guests are U.S. military veterans
- 5% are senior citizens (65 years old or older)
- 60% have drug and/or alcohol abuse
- 33% describe themselves as having mental illness. (We believe the more accurate statistic would be 57-60%.)
- 60% have physical health problems and 36% are disabled
- 22% did not finish high school. The majority of our guests have either a high school diploma, a GED, or has attended college. (Two in the survey hold a bachelor's degree and one has a Ph.D.)
- 18% of our guests have been homeless a month or less, but
- 57% are chronically homeless (more than one year by HUD definitions.) Some of our guests have been homeless 20-30 years.
- 39% have at least one working adult in the home
- 83% percent receive food stamps
- 62% are females