My Way of Giving Back

I grew up in poverty, so I know what it’s like to need the help of a place like St. Mary’s. When I was a kid, we struggled to pay the bills. Sometimes the electricity got turned off, sometimes the water got turned off, and sometimes they both got turned off. It was embarrassing, because I had a crush on the girl next door . . . and sometimes I had to go knock on their door and, with my head down, ask if we could borrow some water. But all along, we made it, because we received emergency food boxes. Years later, I ended up homeless when my wife and I both lost our jobs. There were times when we went without, when I had to look at my 9-year-old girl saying she was hungry . . . and I couldn’t give her anything. That really broke my heart. But St. Mary’s provided us with emergency food boxes, and we made it through. Now I work at St. Mary’s, driving a forklift, moving loads of food around the warehouse and on and off of trucks. My daughter is now 13, and she volunteers here too. It’s a blessing to work at St. Mary’s, to serve people. It makes me move that much faster in the morning, because I can’t wait to get to work. It’s my way of giving back. — Jerome