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Hardly a Wednesday goes by that Frank Thoms and I don’t turn to each other and say, “Man, we are so lucky. We are so blessed.”

We come to that realization early and often.

We’re both volunteers at So Others May Eat, the hot lunch program in an obscure courtyard of the Parroquia de San Miguel de Arc Angel in San Miguel de Allende.

The feeling usually starts when the 120 or so elderly residents begin to straggle in for lunch at the end of Mass. One-by-one and two-by-two, they walk up the long dim corridor to emerge in the bright sunlit courtyard. It takes a moment for old eyes to adjust.

Often, they seem overdressed for the warm weather, in layers of skirts, shawls, heavy coats. You soon realize that many of them have come from far out in the campo for this lunch and it was much colder when their trek began. It will be cooler by the time they get home, too.

A surprising number of them get around with canes or walkers. But then, they nearly all are well over 65 years old. Life has not been easy for them. But they are survivors.

We volunteers form an informal line and greet our guests, “¡Buenas tardes, señora!” “¡Bienvenida!” “¡Buenas tardes, señor!” “¡Bienvenido!” Yes, there are some men, too.

We help them up a wee step by gently holding the crook of a bent arm. They mostly don’t need an assist but the contact from another human being feels good. Some reach out a hand to clasp in greeting. Some will hold up both hands and wiggle them to both sides of line.

Mainly though, it is the smiles. There are so many warm smiles. My jaw begins to ache as I smile back.

Frank, though, he’s a hugger. Frank has devoted a lifetime to improving teaching methods and he’s written a number of books on the topic. I guess you could say he is a real people person. He greets so many of the guests by their first name and embraces them, asks how they are doing, compliments their shawls and hats. He’s been volunteering long enough to know that human contact offers as much nourishment for the soul as a plate full of chicken and mole and rice offers for the stomach.

As everyone finds their seat — some have been sharing the same table with old friends for more than a decade — Dr. Grace Lim launches into the day’s health talk. She prowls the stage, asks questions, gets them to raise hands and engage.

“Engage” is a key word at So Others May Eat.

Dr. Lim “inherited” So Others May Eat from her parents who founded the program in the mid-1980’s. They were of that generation that saw a need and worked out a solution. Dr. Lim’s parents founded The Spa Wellness Center around the same time and dedicated 20 percent of its revenue to the hot lunch program.

Remarkable people. The Spa is still the main funder, even as it grows more and more difficult to allocate funds as operating expenses soar. (Yes, they do need your help.)

Dr. Lim’s husband, Francisco, is there to help, too. It is quite remarkable that two doctors — he’s a cardiologist — with thriving practices and a son to raise can find the time to devote an afternoon to feeding the poor.

This week, after delivering a rousing talk and then visiting each table to check on the medical welfare of each guest, and offering hugs and greetings to the volunteers, Dr. Lim found time to visit with a handful of the guests, snap their photos, and ask them about the SOME experience.

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Then somehow at some time, she created a beautiful post on the SOME Facebook page. She clearly does not believe the day holds only 24 hours.

Here’s the thing, unless you are “Friends” with So Others May Eat, you can’t get into that page.

And I so badly want you to meet these people so you’ll understand why Frank and I — and all the volunteers — walk out at the end of the day in states of grace and gratitude. We are blessed.

So, what you see on this page are the photos by Dr. Grace Lim with her captions beneath each one. I created this page with her permission.

Just look at those faces, won’t you? And hear their words. Each person is extraordinary in some way or another. And we love them all. We are so grateful that they let us into their lives for an afternoon.

Yes, I babble on a bit, but I’m not sorry. They need your financial help. The cost factors out at $120 pesos per person per lunch and you can reach their PayPal account right here. Everything helps.

As you’ll see in these interviews, many of the guests bring the excess food home and stretch it into two and three more meals.

If you want to try and keep up with Dr. Lim and SOME, search for their Facebook page and join. Here’s a link to the website where you can meet even more of our guests.