Food Bank Stories

It isn't easy being at #SoWhatElse (SWE). The people who come for food are raw. It isn't pleasant for them to have to disclose that they don't have enough money to feed their families. When people come for food for the first time, they are tentative. They often step inside and just stand by the door. They are new to SWE and don't know what to do.  Our job is to go to them and welcome them warmly so they know that we are there to help them. We want them to feel welcomed. We explain that all they have to do is let us verify their appointment and give them a Costco-sized cart filled with food. The cart contains both perishable and non-perishable food. All they have to do after that is take the full cart and bring it back when it's empty. After I give them the cart. I look at them and try to read their emotions. Sometimes I can see if they have  a need to tell their story. So I offer them an ear. I learn a lot from the stories. It is painful to hear them. When they stan...

I have gained a lot by volunteering at #SoWhatElse (SWE) over the past year and a half. Some of those gains were not surprising and some were even expected. Feeling good about helping people was expected. Making new friends was not surprising. Learning Spanish, slowly but steadily, was not expected, but a big plus! I enjoy trying to speak to the Spanish-speaking people with whom I interact. There is a plus I never could have imagined. I was at my cousin's, looking at old family pictures. We came across one with no family information on it in English. There were, however, Russian letters under it. As we sat for a while, I suddenly remembered that one of the volunteers, who is now a friend, speaks Russian. I took a picture of the picture and texted it to my friend and asked if she could read the Russian. She could and she did. It didn't identify the person. It was the name of the photographer. My friend also said the picture was taken before 1918. I was very excited to get that i...

#SoWhatElse has had many furloughed employees coming in for the first time. I would like to share several of their stories. A young lady came in with her little baby. She is furloughed. I walked out to her car with her and we were chatting. She said her furlough isn't terrible because while she isn't working, they aren't paying for child care. She is most upset about her husband's furlough. He is considered essential personnel so he is working - without pay! Later that day, a couple came in. He was furloughed and she had just lost her job. Once again, a story of people who suddenly had no income and were not able to buy food. They were pretty upbeat about it and very grateful to So What Else. Then a lady came in. She had an appointment and I checked her in. She was also a Federal employee. I asked to see her government ID Badge. All she had to show was her RIF (Reduction In Force) letter. She lost her job due to the furlough. Another young lady came in. She is a civilia...