Jim & Joe’s Story

Joe will never forget the scene. He was working as a volunteer at the Families Matter Food Pantry, one of our partners.

It was a drive-through distribution on a terribly cold day. Recipients picked up their food boxes without having to leave the warmth of their vehicles.

Then Joe saw them — an entire family, barely bundled in the bitter cold, huddled together walking toward him. They didn’t have a car, but they needed food.

“I learned that they had walked about a mile to get here,” he says. “And then they had to walk home. Seeing what people are willing to do just to get food … Well, volunteering here is a no-brainer for me.”
Same for his friend and fellow volunteer, Jim. Joe and Jim both regularly serve the pantry through a ministry at their church, St. Francis Cabrini in Aliquippa.

Jim, a veteran, first started volunteering because Families Matter distributes food to vets on Mondays. “I just wanted to help them,” he says.

Jim returns to the pantry on Thursdays with his wife to volunteer again.

“It’s a joy to serve,” he says. “I get joy out of giving food to people. I enjoy seeing the smiles on people’s faces when they get the food. It makes your heart pump!”

Joe, who also brings his wife on Thursdays to volunteer, agrees.

“There’s a lot of people who need help,” he says. “That’s why we come.”

Jim and Joe don’t plan on quitting anytime soon.

Says Jim, “We’ll probably do it till we can’t walk anymore!”

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