It was one of those stormy mornings that make you want to pull the covers over your head and stay in bed. The drumming of the rain attempted to lull me back to sleep. It was 7:00 am on a Saturday morning. Grudgingly, I hit the alarm clock buzzer and got up. This wasn't any Saturday, it was Distribution Day! The Angel Food truck would be arriving in a few hours. It was September 2006. A group was coming in to help with the food distribution and it was time to get moving.
Angel Food is a way for people to stretch their food dollars. For $30 dollars (then $25) you can buy a box of food that is valued between $60 and $80. There are no qualifications. You can buy as much or as little as you want. From the office in Good Hope, Georgia trucks laden with food are dispatched all over the country. Payment of cash, check, Pay Pal and Food Stamps are accepted. Some of our clients rely on this as their main grocery purchase each month. Food is paid for at the beginning of the month and picked up at the end of the month.
When everything runs smoothly it's wonderful. When it runs badly it's a nightmare.
We got word at about 9:00 am that the truck was broken down somewhere between Atlanta and Chattanooga. At 10:00 am it was still broken, 11:00 came and went with no further word. The truck ended up being delayed for five hours before arriving. The l0:00 am distribution finally happened at 3:00pm.
Stressful doesn't begin to describe the situation. Some clients needed that food box to feed their kids lunch. To compensate, we ordered pizzas while we waited for the truck. Our clients began talking and sharing stories. One woman's story sticks out in my mind. I share it here in an effort to help you understand the stress she was under. Her name has been changed.
Mary walked home to bring her children to lunch. They were under the care of a family member who declined to come. The rain was pouring. After getting the kids dried off and settled she asked to talk with me privately. While the kids devoured the pizza with gusto her story came out in bits and pieces.
According to Lisa, her husband tried to be good but was abusive. He had a decent paying job but she saw no money. Her husband preferred to buy beer instead of groceries. If the family was to eat it would be up to her to figure out how. They were staying with his family members who were less than thrilled with the situation and that didn't help.
Lisa had no car, three young children and no job. I told her about domestic violence shelters and how they work. She refused saying he would find her. She said that would only make things worse. Lisa said she wanted to work but knew the day care bill would be bigger than her check. She didn't know what she was going to do but she knew one thing. She needed the promised Angel Food box. and said she would wait all night if she had to and unload the truck by herself. We both laughed at that statement. She wanted me to. Lisa probably weighed 100 pounds soaking wet. She had an emaciated look with bags under her eyes.
I reassured her that we could take care of unloading the truck once it arrived. Lisa hugged me and thanked me for listening. Then, she did something unexpected. She went to her purse and showed me her driver's license. It was her birthday. She hadn't told anyone because it wouldn't do any good. Being used to "the system" she thought that I would not believe her if she didn't show me proof of what she was saying. Then Lisa hugged me again saying that having food in her home was going to be the best birthday gift she could have.
When she walked out of my office I started scrambling. She hadn't asked for a present but I felt that I had to find something. At Hope for Healing.Org we have always been fortunate to have people occasionally donate new items. Usually I have something put back and fortunately this time was no exception.
I came out of my office and looked around for Lisa. She was there with her kids. They were finished with their pizza and were cleaning the table when I walked up. Lisa looked at me and I handed her a brand new Bible. Tucked inside the box was a pair of new earrings - one of our products made by the juvenile offenders who serve community service with us.
She looked at me surprised. It hadn't seem to cross her mind that I would try to give her something for her birthday. Lisa did what any woman would do. She cried. Then she hugged her kids, walked them back home and came back to wait on her food box.
Lisa is no longer in this situation. They moved a few months after this happened. I ran into her the other day. We only talked a moment but she said things were better. I don't know what happened but she certainly looked better and seemed happier. She still remembered the box and gifts and thanked me for them again. I told her the pleasure was all mine and meant it.
If you view the slideshow on our blog you can see the area we serve. It is beautiful but you can see how stuck a person like Lisa is without transportation or a place to work.
No comments:
Post a Comment