An Interview with The Donut Man
On a typical Sunday morning after a church service at Calvary, one might catch a glimpse of a smiling man wearing a plush donut pin, standing by the valet entrance doors with a cart full of treats. Fondly dubbed “The Donut Man” by Calvary’s children, the name has appropriately described the unique ministry Jerry Elie, the Donut Man, has created. Since 2000, Jerry has been handing out donut holes, and more recently other treats as well, like cookies and marshmallows, to the children of Calvary as they file in and out the church’s doors. However, what is now a successful ministry, going through about 300 donut holes every Sunday, actually started off as “just an accident,” as Jerry explains.
The Donut Man’s story started in the winter of 1999-2000 as a member of the valet team, standing outside of Calvary with a single mom and her daughter, waiting for their car. “We had our hands in our pockets because it was cold,” Jerry says, “and I felt a piece of hard candy in my pocket. So I gave it to the little girl. She had looked up at me with these big Bambi eyes and asked ‘are you my Daddy?’ and I said ‘no, but I would be proud to be your Dad.’” After that encounter, Jerry kept thinking about how such a simple act of kindness was such a blessing to that child, and wondered how he could be a blessing to more children in such a way. One day, as he walked into Dunkin’ Donuts, it finally hit him. “I saw a plate of Munchkins, and I thought how that would be perfect to hand out to kids on Sundays,” Jerry says. “So, I started off with just a box of twenty-five.” But twenty-five donut holes would prove not enough, as Muchkins flew out of the box to eager hands, and word got around quickly to the kids of Calvary about the Donut Man. Twenty-five Munchkins soon turned into fifty, and then seventy-five, and as the weeks went on, Jerry stepped down from his position on valet and became the full-fledged Calvary Donut Man.
Handing out treats to kids on Sundays has become a true ministry at Calvary. “The mission of the Donut Man is a kindness to children,” Jerry describes. “But, I actually think I get more of a blessing out of it than the kids!” Jerry tries to be a good role model to the kids and also tries to show them faithfulness in his service, standing outside every Sunday for them with his treats. He sees God through all the little thank-you’s throughout his day of serving, as well as the blessings through the church to support his ministry. “I want to thank all the people who gave me coupons, certificates, and cash for all those treats, because I couldn’t have done any of this without their help,” Jerry says gratefully.
What started out as the passing of one candy has now become a full-time job for Jerry. “I can’t preach or teach, but God used me, and he can use you if you make yourself available,” he explains with a smile. “I like saying that if you want to be in a ministry, just remember the Donut Man and how such a simple ministry can become a great blessing.” Jerry Elie’s eleven years of faithful service as the Donut Man has brought about eleven years of smiles on children’s faces here at Calvary. It goes to show that even the simplest of ministries are glorifying acts for God’s kingdom.