Chef John Tumino Forgoes Feeding Customers To Feed Homeless, And Redefines 'Service' For Us All (VIDEOS)

Open up any magazine or newspaper food section, and it won't be hard to find The Chef Profile. The article will focus on a chef whose restaurant is white hot thanks to its innovative approach to reinvigorating a specific cuisine. (See: Danny Bowien, Sean Brock, Daniel Humm, etc.)

Less often seen is the feature article about a chef who now spends his days helping the homeless. John Tumino, a Syracuse-based chef, was recently profiled in a three-part series by the Syracuse Post-Standard. (See: parts 1, 2, 3) He gave up the steady salary and reliability of his job as a full-time chef to help feed the local homeless population, person-by person.

Tumino's organization, In My Father's Kitchen, feeds people's "spirit, soul and body by using food to open the door to people’s hearts." Tumino's aim is to send a message to the homeless population that they are not invisible -- he prepares food, but also works to get to know the people he feeds.

He explains how he got started, and his spiritual inspiration:

"Everyone has a story behind that cardboard sign":

The effect of his work:

Learn more over at Syracuse.com.