Karen runs the Worcester Community Kitchen and Food Shelf in Worcester, VT. With your help and Karen’s love and dedicated service, help is there for people in central Vermont struggling with hunger. After volunteering at the Vermont Foodbank, here’s what she had to say:
“While bringing a group of volunteers to the Foodbank this morning, I told them this place was like Disneyland to me. Of course, I got some strange looks, so I went on to explain. The Vermont Foodbank is like Disney to me, because of all the happiness contained inside. It is truly a happy place for me. I run a community lunch and a food shelf, so upon seeing this place, in my mind, I see all the happy people and hear the grateful stories of what it means to receive food.
In my town of a little more than 1,000 residents, on average 100 people show up to share a meal at noon every Wednesday. On average we serve 48 families each month with supplemental/emergency food from our food shelf. I have heard the desperate voices, seen the tears of their struggles and the gratitude of having a way to feed their family with good, nutritious food. What gets better than that?
For the first time in my life, I have experienced food insecurity through the eyes of others. Being part of the Foodbank, as a network partner and a mentor that brings volunteers to the Foodbank, I am proud to share my excitement with them, it is a great feeling. Thus, for me, going to the Foodbank is like a trip to Disneyland!”
Francis and Jerome both know what it’s like to be unhoused in Vermont without access to nourishing food. They advocate for food security and are sharing their experiences with state legislators and the public to support policy changes that address the root causes of hunger.
The Winooski Necessity Store welcomes students, faculty, and community members to get essential items, similar to a food shelf.
How do you find the heart of a community? You can find it in the people who run its food shelf. At the Onion River Food Shelf in Marshfield, VT, one of those people is Diana.
