For over 100 years, St. Mary’s Catholic Church has been operating a soup kitchen to feed the poor and hungry.  Today, I got a chance to be a part of the legendary operation:

St. Mary’s Cathedral

First and foremost, I would like to explain that I have volunteered places in the past and many times felt like I was in the way – “too many cooks in the kitchen” type scenarios.  But not today!  Mr. Ron, the volunteer director, greeted me at the door, introduced himself, and immediately put me to work.  THAT is exactly what I wanted. No beating around the bush, no standing around wondering what I should be doing—BOOM: Sandwich makin’ time!  And if there’s one thing I know, it’s sandwiches.  I enjoyed sitting at the table, listening to the other volunteers tell me a little about themselves, and secretly trying to compete with them as to who (to whom?) can make the most sandwiches.  I had to bite my tongue to keep from asking “What number are you on?”.  I didn’t want to come off as that crazy so soon.

My perfectly made sandwich

After the sandwich making competition, I was asked to hand out pastries as the patrons lined up for coffee.  I didn’t have much interaction with them, just a smile and a “good mornin’!”  My next task was to ladle piping hot soup into approximately 200 cups.  Thanks to the assistance and steady hands of my good friend Sarah, we managed to stack 5 trays of soup cups on top of each other without spilling a drop.  The other volunteers and I then worked in assembly line fashion to give each patron a hefty cup of soup, 2 sandwiches, and a dessert. It took about an hour for everyone to shuffle through, eat, and leave.

Ladlin’ like a BOSS

It wasn’t until I got home and walked through my front door that I suddenly gained some perspective about my experience. I have a roof over my head, food in my fridge, and a warm bed to sleep in at night. It’s difficult to complain about anything going on in my life after helping out at St. Mary’s, serving those in need.  My experience reminded me that nothing should be taken for granted and no matter how hard things might seem from time to time, there are plenty of people that would love to be in my shoes.

Handin’ out food

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