Jesuit Volunteer EnCorps of Bend has a big heart for those living in poverty and know that healthy food is a great way to show up with support and love for their community. Seven out of our 18 of this year’s JV Encorps members (JVEs) serve directly with agencies that provide food and other services for the most needy of Central Oregon. These agencies include St.Vincent de Paul of Bend, Redmond, and Prineville; The Giving Plate; and, Care/Share in Sun River. These Bend JVE nourish their community with love and good food, and are also equally nourished by the community members with whom they serve.
The director of St. Vincent de Paul of Bend, Jordan Reeher, highlights the positive impact of volunteers, “You may not be present at the moment
someone gets hired at a new job, when they make the decision to get clean from severe drug use, or when they start filling empty cupboards before their kids get home from school, but these moments are only possible because of our partners and volunteers who reach out to God’s most precious living in our community.”
Says JVE, Patty Christopher, “All these agencies and volunteers make it a point to help our guests leave our doors with a grocery cart full of delicious food, with heads held high and shoulders a little lighter because of the love and nourishment they have received from our local food pantries.”
