Walking Together

“It was watering the seed that was always planted in me.”

At the Kinship Community Food Center, we are blessed to witness the transformation that happens when each of us is called deeper into the life-giving world of community.  When we discover the gifts that we are meant to give and the gifts that we are meant to receive, then we are strengthened and surprised to discover new purpose and joy.  Our Team Stride mentoring program is a constant witness to this truth.

A community member, who for their privacy will call her Evelyn, a mother of three, came to the Riverwest Food Pantry because she heard she could get help with more than just food, and that’s where she joined Team Stride and met Amy.  When Evelyn and Amy first met, Evelyn’s child support had recently stopped, she had lost her job while trying to finish school, and she was about to lose her apartment as well.

Amy, a member of Team Stride, was nervous about entering into someone else’s life. “I wondered if I would be able to do or say the right things.” As Amy and Evelyn worked together, they quickly connected through their shared faith and prayer.

Together, Evelyn and Amy found an apartment, got connected with resources such as job referrals and afterschool child care, and are now working towards even bigger goals. Evelyn was encouraged by Amy’s firm and tender love. “It was the way that she approached me, it helped me be more determined, it was watering the seed that was always planted in me.”

At the Kinship Community Food Center, relationships such as Amy’s and Evelyn’s, are transforming lives as our community discovers lasting and sustainable ways of helping one another flourish.