If you were to step into Hope’s Kitchen on any given weekday, you’d see something remarkable taking place.
A series of tables placed end-to-end. A line of volunteers on either side, each with a different job. Some are serving portions of food into the compartments of a plastic plate — a couple small burritos here, rice and beans there and fresh fruit into another.
The plates get passed down the assembly line. Lids are affixed, meals are placed into boxes, all prepped and ready to distribute to children and seniors throughout the community.
It’s a well-oiled machine that on its busiest day can churn out 2,500 meals, 2,500 snacks and 500 breakfasts. It all happens so fast that if you blink, you’d miss a step.
“It’s organized chaos,” says Kathryn Smith, the director of Hope’s Kitchen — the meal production area at the Regional Food Bank. “I just make sure everything gets done.”
In this case, “everything” means a lot of fresh, healthy meals — more than 10,000 a week. Kathryn, relentlessly energetic, thrives on the fast pace.
“I like being on my feet all day, I like being busy, and I like running around,” she says. “But even on our busiest, most stressful days, I get to go home and say, ‘I did something worthwhile today. I fed 2,500 kids today who may not have eaten otherwise.’”
Kathryn particularly enjoys meeting and working with the hundreds of volunteers who work in Hope’s Kitchen every year.
“Sometimes I get volunteers who say, ‘I used to eat these meals as a kid, and now I get to make those meals for someone else’s kid,’” Kathryn says. “I like seeing people pay it forward.”
Thank YOU for paying it forward through your support. Want to volunteer in Hope’s Kitchen? Click here to learn how!
Next story: Meet a CEO Who Went Hungry as a Child
