Christian ministry sues after Phoenix criminalizes its weekly meals for the homeless

St. Herman’s Table, an Orthodox Christian ministry, serves meals and shares the gospel with the homeless at a park in Phoenix, Arizona, every Thursday. Volunteers distribute water, small hygiene items, and Bibles as part of their outreach.

However, this weekly act of almsgiving and evangelizing is now at the center of a lawsuit after the Phoenix City Council approved the Medical Treatment and Food Distribution in Parks Ordinance, which would effectively prevent St. Herman’s Table, a ministry of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Orthodox Church, from continuing its charitable efforts.

‘Phoenix provides no evidence or meaningful argument explaining why a birthday party providing cake to twenty select two-year-olds is any less likely to strain park resources with noise or mess than a religiously-motivated gathering open to twenty members of the public.’

St. Herman’s Table and its founder, Lance Brace, filed a lawsuit against Phoenix, arguing that the new ordinance, which took effect in early June, violates the First Amendment and the Arizona Free Exercise of Religion Act by criminalizing their weekly almsgiving, which, he notes, is a mandatory practice of the Orthodox Church.

The city’s website described the ordinance as “establishing a comprehensive framework for medical treatment and food distribution events in City parks,” where there was previously no formal oversight. The new rule requires those like St. Herman’s Table to apply for a permit to distribute food.

Critics of the ordinance argue that it effectively amounts to a ban by limiting permits to just two per park each month. Furthermore, it restricts these activities to parking lots or other hardscape areas, which generally lack shade and other amenities.

Brace, who spoke with Blaze News, described what inspired him, his wife, and his son to start St. Herman’s Table. After becoming baptized into the Orthodox Church, Brace had an “overwhelming feeling” that he needed to help his local homeless neighbors.

The Exaltation of the Holy Cross Orthodox Church already had a program in which its parishioners would assemble bags filled with food, water, clothing, and other essential items. Church members would keep these care packages in their cars to be distributed to homeless individuals they encounter while driving around the city.

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Image source: Lance Brace

Brace became involved in the church’s charitable efforts and drove to various parks and other locations to provide care packages.

“We kept ending up at this same park, the Cave Creek Park at Cactus, and got to know several of the people that were there very consistently. And just had this feeling like this is where we need to be,” Brace said.

Father Thomas Frisby, with the Exaltation of the Holy Cross Orthodox Church, told Blaze News that St. Herman’s Table is a “grassroots” effort led by the Brace family.

“If you knew the couple that’s running this, they are just extremely conscientious and just great people. It was literally just birthed out of, they lived near there, they would see people in the park, and they’re like, ‘Let’s do something to help,’” Frisby stated.

In Oct. 2025, Brace and his family started preparing homemade meals on Wednesdays and setting up a buffet at the Cave Creek Park at Cactus on Thursday evenings to serve food and pray with those in need. Members of Brace’s church soon learned that he was hosting weekly meals at the park, and they began volunteering alongside Brace and his family.

“By about December, early January, we had consistently about five different parishioners that would come out every week. And it really became, at that point, an organization, an event,” Brace stated.

Around the same time St. Herman’s Table was growing, the Phoenix City Council approved the Safe Medical Treatment in Parks Ordinance, which aimed to enhance park safety by regulating medical activities in public parks. Councilmembers’ Dec. 2025 decision to pass this ordinance followed resident concerns about sanitation issues in parks, particularly regarding drug use and discarded syringes.

The ordinance’s effective date was delayed twice “to allow time for stakeholder outreach to be conducted.” Then, in Mar. 2026, the city proposed a revised order, the Medical Treatment and Food Distribution in Parks Ordinance, which expanded regulations to limit food distribution. The new ordinance took effect on June 7.

The city’s ordinance does not apply to family members aiding one another, private gatherings, or the distribution of water.

Those who violate the order could be charged with a Class 1 misdemeanor, which could lead to a sentence of up to 180 days in jail and a fine of up to $2,500.

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Image source: Lance Brace

In response to the St. Herman’s Table lawsuit, a spokesperson for Phoenix stated that the city intends to defend its ordinance, which it believes is lawful.

Several days after St. Herman’s Table filed the complaint, a judge granted a temporary restraining order preventing the city from enforcing its ordinance against the organization and Brace for 14 days.

“Phoenix provides no evidence or meaningful argument explaining why a birthday party providing cake to twenty select two-year-olds is any less likely to strain park resources with noise or mess than a religiously-motivated gathering open to twenty members of the public,” the judge wrote.

Phoenix agreed to comply with the judge’s order, but argued that the ordinance “makes no distinction based on religion.”

“The City Council adopted this ordinance to ensure that all residents can enjoy their neighborhood parks, and it applies equally to anyone who wants to hold a feeding event at a park,” the city said. “The ordinance simply provides an effective tool to regulate and manage the growing competition in City parks between food distribution events and other, more traditional park uses, like children’s play, youth sports, adult recreation, and family outings.”

Brace rejected the idea that St. Herman’s Table’s efforts to feed the homeless compromise the cleanliness and safety of the park.

“Everything that we’re doing with St. Herman’s, we’re doing in love. And that includes how we’re approaching the City Council, the Parks Department, and potentially any police officers that might have to enforce this ordinance,” Brace stated. “They are also our neighbors, and we love them deeply.”

“It’s being a lot of times framed, in my opinion, as we don’t want clean and safe parks, right? That we want to take care of these people at the detriment of the park. And I just don’t agree with that,” he added.

He stated that St. Herman’s volunteers make a deliberate effort to remove trash before and after their weekly event. The group claims that the city has never cited them for the park gatherings.

When reached for comment on why the city chose to combine park restrictions on medical services and food distribution, rather than separating the two categories, Phoenix’s Parks and Recreation Department referred Blaze News to its webpage detailing the ordinance.

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