Debe has lived in Armstrong county her entire life. A single mother to five children, Debe worked three jobs at a time to support her kids. She waited tables, worked at the supermarket and even cleaned horse stalls in the evening. Money was so tight, childcare wasn’t an option. Debe often brought her kids to work with her.
“It was an ongoing struggle.”
One day, Debe was working at a hoagie shop in downtown Kittanning, when she saw a flood of foot traffic at a building across the street. She walked over on her break, and stumbled upon Grace Presbyterian Food Pantry, a partner of Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank.
“The next time I came over on my break from work and I just cried the whole way through the line,” said Debe. “I thought-this is like somebody handing me a big grocery bag of food. And it was life changing to me.”
The experience was so powerful, Debe has not only continued to receive food assistance, she also started helping out as a regular pantry volunteer.
She says those who donate to the Food Bank don’t always realize how much it truly means to people who receive food assistance.
“I truly appreciate it because the number one thing is, when you do what you do, we know we’re not forgotten. You think about us and you care about us, what happens to us and I can’t thank you enough for that.”