The aroma of buffalo chicken mac and cheese fills the industrial kitchen at St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church as John Pogas methodically peels chicken from the bone, his weathered hands working with practiced precision. Around him, volunteers arrive one by one, their voices creating a growing chorus of excitement as they ask, “What can I do to help?”
“Do you wanna help?” Pogas asks, flour dusting his apron as he gestures toward containers of chicken. “We need someone on chicken duty.” His eyes crinkle with the kind of smile that makes saying no impossible.
In the Church Kitchen
On Wednesday evenings, the back entrance kitchen of St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church in Jeffersonville transforms ordinary parishioners into a ministry machine. Pogas, the newly appointed Director of FOCUS Philadelphia, moves through the space like a conductor, assigning stations and guiding volunteers toward their 6 PM departure deadline.
The Fellowship of Orthodox Christians United to Serve (FOCUS) represents more than an acronym. It embodies a pan-Orthodox approach to serving the poor through Food, Occupation, Clothing, Understanding, and Shelter. Under Pogas’s leadership, what began as serving 30 meals has grown to 120 weekly meals across two locations.
Before the caravan leaves for Norristown, the volunteers gather in a circle for prayer, a moment that turns individual effort into collective mission.
A Father’s Legacy in Food
Pogas’s commitment to feeding others traces directly to his immigrant father’s example. His father, a polyglot translator who spoke Greek, Albanian, English, Italian, and Turkish, established Ernie’s Restaurant at 15th and Arch Streets, a Philadelphia diner that never closed, serving 365 days a year.
“I remember as a kid saying to him, take a day off, take Christmas off, take Thanksgiving off,” Pogas recalls. “And he said to me in Greek, pointing to the YMCA across the street, ‘Where are they going to eat?’ Meaning these guys got to eat, too, and I am their food source.”
Today, Pogas serves meals just blocks from where his father’s restaurant once stood, carrying forward a family legacy written in warm plates and open doors.
A Ten-Minute Drive
The trip from St. Sophia to downtown Norristown takes ten minutes, long enough for anticipation to build, short enough to keep the food warm. At 201 Swede Street, across from the Norristown Transportation Center, the FOCUS team encounters a line of people already assembled, their patience a testament to the ministry’s reliability.
Here stands the Upper Room, operated by Mike Kingsley through his Coalition to Save Lives. Kingsley, who navigates with crutches, has been serving this community for over 12 years, building relationships that transform strangers into family.
“We serve about 250 people here on a typical Saturday,” Kingsley explains. “When they are waiting for us for an hour before we open, we know they are hungry. My heart will not let me stop.”
Old Friends and New Hope
What strikes observers immediately is the warmth of recognition. Pogas moves through the crowd like someone arriving at a family reunion, embracing familiar faces and inquiring about personal struggles with genuine care. These are not transactions. They are relationships built over months of consistent presence.
Joseph Williams, known as Joey, bridges the gap between FOCUS Philadelphia and Kingsley’s ministry. Having worked with Kingsley for nearly four years, Williams has witnessed extraordinary growth, from serving twice monthly to four days weekly, now 16 services each month.
“These people that we serve, they are rejected by society and cast out by everyone,” Williams emphasizes. “But these people have names, they are parents and they are children. They are brothers and sisters. They are just lost and they just want to be loved.”
Beyond the Serving Line
What distinguishes FOCUS Philadelphia’s approach extends beyond the substantial meals of buffalo chicken mac and cheese, sandwiches, and fresh fruit chosen for people with dental issues. Every service begins with prayer, and each person receives more than food, they receive blessing.
“There is also the significance of the egg, signifying new life for Orthodox Christians,” Pogas explains about their inclusion of hard-boiled eggs. “We break eggs at Pascha. Just like Jesus emerged from the sealed tomb, we crack eggs to signify new life and Jesus’s victory over death.”
But the work does not end at the serving line. As the evening winds down, Pogas demonstrates the proactive heart of ministry. Accompanied by Williams, he crosses the street to the Norristown Transportation Center’s upper level, searching for individuals who might need an invitation to dinner.
The station carries the stale stench of urine mixed with industrial disinfectant, an assault on the senses that speaks to the harsh realities faced by those who seek shelter in public spaces. Post-rush hour sunset has left the platform quieter than usual, though the lingering odors tell stories of desperation and survival.
“The train runs right into the city,” Pogas explains quietly as they scan the nearly empty platform. “Many people ride it both ways to purchase drugs. When they come back, sometimes they are in rough shape. We try to catch them here, offer them something better.”
Redefining Prosperity
Back at the Upper Room, the evening’s deeper mission reveals itself. While some take their meals and leave, others linger for faith discussions in the adjacent room or simply for the chance to connect. Kingsley, commanding respect from his wheelchair, knows everyone’s story. Williams’s wife joins the effort, creating additional bridges between servers and served.
Pogas moves through the room sharing his own struggles, his knee problems, his cancer recovery, with the same openness he shows in discussing theology. That honesty draws people closer. In the Orthodox tradition it is called philoxenia, a love of strangers that makes them feel like family.
That spirit also reshaped his understanding of what success means. After 16 years with Aon as Global Vice President of e-commerce, Pogas realized that prosperity could not be measured by numbers on a bank statement or the square footage of a house.
“I came from the corporate world, right? And to me, the word prosperity meant, what is in your bank account? What are you driving? What is the square footage of your house?” he reflects. “That is not prosperity. Now I understand prosperity to be, what have I given to people? How have I served the Lord?”
This October, that commitment will be formally recognized when he becomes an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, the highest honor any Orthodox Christian can receive as a defender of the faith.
And his vision is not limited to one parish. In just two years, FOCUS North America grew from five to eleven centers, nearly a 60 percent expansion. What happens on Wednesday nights in Norristown and Thursday evenings in Philadelphia is part of a much bigger shift, as Orthodox communities across the country take up the same call.
A Table That Does Not End
FOCUS Philadelphia now serves in two places, each with its own community. On Wednesday nights, volunteers gather at the Upper Room in Norristown, across from the transportation center, where they primarily serve people struggling with addiction. On Thursdays, the team sets up in Aviator Park, directly across from the Franklin Institute. There, forty to fifty people arrive early and wait in line, drawn by the consistency and care that have built trust week after week.
For Pogas, the work is not just charity but living theology. A priest friend once told him there are two moments when one feels closest to Christ: “when he is preparing the gifts for Communion and when he is handing a sandwich to a homeless person.”
That thought captures why Pogas continues his father’s tradition of never closing the door on hungry people. Supported by partners like Kingsley’s Coalition to Save Lives and volunteers like Joseph Williams, this ministry represents more than feeding programs. It is a testament to how faith communities can transform society through consistent, loving presence.
“We are here for a very short time. We have an eternity in the kingdom of heaven,” Pogas concludes. “I try to do as much as I can to help those who need help and really just serve the Lord the best way that I can.”
A Note from John Pogas
Mark 10:45 reminds us: “For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus presented himself as the ultimate servant. As Christians we are called to follow his example. You can do that by helping. Join us in cooking and preparing meals. Come and serve with us. And if you cannot be here in person, you can still help keep this ministry alive with a gift.
Go to focusphiladelphia.org and consider making a recurring monthly donation. Think about what you already spend on Verizon or Netflix each month. Even $25 a month to help feed your brothers and sisters in Christ is far more rewarding than reruns of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
We serve in all weather, sun or rain, hot or cold. And with your help, we will never stop.
Featured image: John Pogas leads a prayer before volunteers serve meals at the Upper Room in Norristown.