On Wednesday, Feb. 11, the memorial of Our Lady of Lourdes, I made a trip to Hastings for our annual volunteer luncheon. Like other similar events across the diocese, it gives us a chance to thank our many volunteers who are the backbone of our agency. In some respects, they are our ‘unsung heroes,’ meaning, they certainly deserve more recognition.
The event was planned by Jill McMahon, our volunteer coordinator in Hastings, along with Sarah Klabenes and Christine Cook. The menu included a crisp garden salad, potato salad, chips, fork-tender roast beef and pork and jazzed-up baked beans, with an impressive array of desserts and chocolates.
As I visited each table, greeting and thanking our many volunteers, I asked them this question, “What is the best thing about volunteering?”
Several of the older men replied, jokingly I am confident, “To get out of the house!” The most common answer reflected their desire to serve Jesus who lives in the poor and needy. Others added how gratifying it is to help and serve others seeing gratitude for the help they receive at Catholic Social Services.
Yes, our volunteers truly are the backbone of our 83-year-old agency. Our volunteers do many things for us, including, answering phones, doing clerical work, packing food, picking up and delivering bread, making and handing out sack lunches, working in our fixed and mobile food pantries, performing housecleaning chores, working in our thrift stores, maintenance work, refinishing and repairing furniture, planting and watering flowers, teaching GED and ESL classes or countless other items done for us.
Last year, more than 1,000 volunteers gave over 23,000 hours to Catholic Social Services at a value to the agency of nearly $200,000. For this, I will be eternally thankful.
Please allow me to once again thank all of our volunteers at Catholic Social Services! If anyone reading this feels called by God to volunteer for us, please contact Bill Sullivan in Imperial at 308-882-3065; Jill McMahon in Hastings at 402-463-2112; or Bryan Dahlberg in Lincoln at 402-474-1600. In contemplating volunteering, please remember these words of Jesus, “Truly I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Mt 25:40).
