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November 4, 2020The Dorothy Day Center at Saint Charles Borromeo has been rising early to deliver food, toting heavy grocery sacks and responding to messages for help for 15 years.
This year, the Dorothy Day Center commemorates 15 years of service to people in need.
Part of the parish’s social ministry program, the Dorothy Day Center is an all-volunteer, delivery only, community-wide hunger ministry. In partnership with Archbishop Oscar Romero Catholic Worker House, volunteers meet the third and fourth Saturdays monthly to sack and deliver to households. Weekday deliveries also are made.
Director Marcus Evans has been a volunteer from the earliest days.
“Some people delivered groceries with a cart attached to bicycles,” Evans said.
Reflecting on changes, Evans said, “We were sacking groceries on the sidewalk at Bob Waldrop’s house. Now we have volunteers, a bank account, funding, computers and warehouse equipment. In 15 years, we’ve evolved. There aren’t requirements like proof of income. We figure if people ask for food they need it.”
The center obtains bulk items from the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma, but parishioners from Saint Charles also participate by bringing non-perishable foods to the church’s wooden bin. Requests are printed in the bulletin for items not available from the food bank.
Since 2005, volunteers have delivered groceries to more than 172,000 people, sharing almost three million pounds of food. Dorothy Day herself summed up the irony of numbers by saying she could talk of serving thousands of meals but that God was concerned with Joe, Teresa and Mary who rose at 5 a.m. to fix coffee for each guest, each child of God, who visited the houses of hospitality for breakfast.
Evans reflected, “The whole secret about this kind of work is not that you change people’s lives but what it does for you. I don’t know if I’ve changed anyone’s life but I know that it has changed me.”
Find further information at thedorothydaycenter.com and on Facebook.
Dorothy Day Center
St. Charles Borromeo Catholic Church
thedorothydaycenter.com
Facebook: The Dorothy Day Center and St. Charles Community Organic Garden
Photo: People sacked groceries for delivery at The Dorothy Day Center. Photo provided.
