Come be the hands and feet of Christ in our community

by Lauren Solidum

“Whoever is generous to the poor lends to the Lord, and he will repay him for his deed.”

— Prv 19:17

April is National Volunteer Month and at Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas, we are truly blessed with over 9,000 volunteers who have chosen our agency as their vessel for living out their faith. They embody Jesus’ teaching of freely giving love and mercy to those most in need every single day through their generous service. We rely heavily on them to help us carry out our critical mission of providing help, hope and hospitality to the most vulnerable among us.

The volunteers at Catholic Charities deeply recognize the poor and vulnerable in our communities and show up to put words into action by serving them physically, emotionally and spiritually. Our volunteers serve in a variety of meaningful ways. They assist with our mobile food distribution; pick up food donations as part of our Grocery Store Rescue; aid children in our Kansas City, Kansas, schools; sort donations at our TurnStyles thrift stores; help with job interviews and polish resumes; and even drive our Resource Bus to our rural communities to ensure that our services reach those at the farthest corners of our archdiocese. The versatility of their skills and talents is second only to the vast breadth and depth of our 30-plus programs here at Catholic Charities.

Recently, we asked our volunteers to share something they learned or that they wished more people knew about volunteering at Catholic Charities. Beth, who assists with our refugee program, said, “Besides the good feeling of using your time to serve others and making new friends, volunteering opens you up to a stronger connection to your community and a wider understanding of and appreciation for the difficulties some members of our community are experiencing. Their needs can compel you to want to do more.”

Catholic Charities offers the opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ in your community. The experience provides a real-life education on the challenges that those living in poverty face daily. It fosters deep community connections and pushes us beyond our comfort zones.

Thanks be to God for those who share their talents with Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas! If you have not had an experience with Catholic Charities, I personally invite you to learn more about the critical work that we do and how you can engage with us. Each month, we offer a bus tour that gives an overview of our programs and visits some of our sites including our Hope Distribution Center and Shalom House. To sign up, go online to: catholiccharitiesks.org/bus-tours.

In addition, critical work team, student and large group volunteer opportunities are listed on our website at: catholiccharitiesks.org/volunteer.