🔒Faenza, Fonti devote life to feeding Hartford’s poor

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Sisters Maureen Faenza and Theresa Fonti reached out to Hartford's poor and hungry 35 years ago by offering free coffee and stale doughnuts.

The Catholic nuns never dreamed then that their mission to feed the poor would become what it is today.

“Never,” they said, almost in unison, from their modest office at 1453 Main St.

Today, they steer a $1.5 million-a-year enterprise, The House of Bread, that feeds, shelters, educates and uplifts children and adults. For those in need, the sisters and their organization are a beacon of light and dignity.

“We never had a plan,” said Fonti, 76, co-director with Faenza, 69. “Our purpose was to go out and feed people. Our purpose was to be present to people who were sort of rejects or alone or needed companionship.”

They started small, setting up a table in the teen center at Sacred Heart Church, but no needy came, so they sought a location more visible to the poor, finding one at the San Juan Center on Main Street. They were soon discovered and later moved to a larger location and expanded several more times over the years, adding services beyond food as they saw the need.

Faenza and Fonti are a sponsored ministry of their community, the Sisters of St. Joseph. The sponsorship ensures the mission will continue after they're gone.

The work is sometimes challenging. But they're fortunate to have what Faenza calls a wonderful board of directors. Their team also includes 22 full- and part-time staff and about 150 to 200 volunteers.

House of Bread comprises the soup kitchen at 27 Chestnut St., serving breakfast and lunch meals totaling about 1,500 per week, and Kids Café, preparing about 500 meals a day delivered after school to children at various locations.

House of Bread also provides transitional housing for men and women in substance abuse recovery programs; a day shelter; Helping our Mothers through Education (HOME), where women with children can prepare for their GEDs and receive child care; child mentoring; English and refugee services through Jubliee House; job training through its Food Education and Service Training program (FEAST); and a thrift shop.

Carl Zyskowski, president of the House of Bread board, said he is heartened by the growth of the organization, which “touches upwards of 1,000 people every day,” after being founded “out of a trunk filled with doughnuts and coffee.” What it does is “vast and it's magical,” he said, crediting Faenza and Fonti for their work.

“They've had the ability to touch so many lives in so many different ways for the past 35 years,” he said.

House of Bread probably has the most daily impact on Hartford's needy, Zyskowski said.

“The dynamic of these two women brings out goodness in people,” he said. “People want to go there to help or to volunteer because of what they've created and it's an amazing thing.”

Faenza and Fonti enjoy seeing those they help improve their lives.

“Yes we're feeding people and we'll probably always feed people, but what helps me keep going is the people who have gotten up by the bootstraps and done something,” Faenza said. “To see families and little kids come and today they're going to college — you know it's wonderful.”

Their work can be extremely emotional. One example was a man, who about 25 years ago visited them often for breakfast. They visited him on Christmas Eve in the abandoned building where he lived on the dirt floor of a basement. He gave them a card with Merry Christmas misspelled and $1 inside. They still have that card and dollar bill, Fonti said.

They also work as a team, complementing each other's personalities and strengths.

“We get along very well; we're very different,” Fonti said. “I think I'm much more structured than Maureen, but she's taught me some freedoms, too, like letting go of some things, and not worrying about it. So it's a good balance.”

Fonti explained, “She dreams, 'Let's do this, and let's do that, how about this kind of project?' And I'll start pulling in the reins.”

Faenza acknowledged some screaming matches in the past, too, adding, “There's been some days.”

But the relationship works, with a lot of give and take, Fonti said. Faenza agreed, joking that she's the one mostly giving in.

They bounce ideas off each other and reflect on them together, which has been a big help, Fonti said.

They don't necessarily reflect on what they've created; there's too much work to do.

“I just think we do what we have to do and I don't think much about this magnificent organization,” Fonti said. “I just do it and you do it with simplicity and hope that God will continue blessing us.”

Sisters Maureen Faenza and Theresa Fonti

The Basics

Name of organization: The House of Bread Inc.

Title: Co-Founders & Co-Directors

Size of organization: Annual budget $1.5 million

Maureen Faenza

Education: Bachelor’s degree, St. Joseph University; Master’s degree in community and economic development

Previous jobs: Elementary school teacher, religious education director in a parish  

On the job

Guiding business principle: Treating people fairly and trying to be non-judgmental

Best way to keep your competitive edge:  Being aware of what is happening in the nonprofit world

Proudest accomplishment: Working with a board of directors who embrace the mission of the House of Bread and do all they can to help us accomplish that mission

Goal yet to be achieved: Still in the thought process

Favorite part of the job: Creating new projects

Least favorite part of the job: Asking for money

Personal touch in your office: Open-door policy

Judgment calls

Best business decision: Always trying to respond to the needs of those in the city who are often ignored

Worst business decision: Having to maintain property outside of the state

Best way to spot trends: Collaborate with other agencies doing similar work

Next big move: Retirement

Your pet peeve: Hartford is my hometown. It gets a lot of bad news, but I think it’s a great city.

Personal side

City of residence: Hartford

Favorite way to relax: Reclining in my favorite chair and reading a good book

Hobbies: Cooking and reading

Last vacation: Road trip out west: Utah, Arizona, and Colorado

Favorite movie: “The Godfather”

The car you drive: Ford Five Hundred, 2005

Currently reading: “Nightingale,” by Kristin Hannah

Favorite cause: House of Bread 

Theresa Fonti

Education: Master’s degree in education and religious studies from Boston College

Previous jobs: Elementary and high school teacher, pastoral associate 

On the job

Guiding business principle: Respect and dignity for clients, staff and volunteers

Best way to keep your competitive edge:  Continue to address the needs of the poor through collaboration with other not-for-profit agencies

Proudest accomplishment: Successful fundraiser that helped expand our feeding programs

Goal yet to be achieved: End homelessness

Favorite part of the job: Being with our clients, seeing our mothers receive their GED, and sharing this accomplishment with their families

Least favorite part of the job: Feeling of frustration when seeking help in finding housing

Personal touch in your office: All are welcome

Judgment calls

Best way to spot trends: Keep up with latest literature, keeping in touch with similar organizations

Next big move:  Retirement

Personal side

City of residence: Hartford

Favorite way to relax: Gardening, going for walks, being with family

Hobbies: Gardening, walking with friends

Last vacation: Jersey Shore

Favorite movie: “Gone with the Wind”

The car you drive: 2003 Toyota

Currently reading: “The House I Loved,” by Tatiana DeRosnay

Favorite cause: Children in need