Thankful for Volunteers

Volunteers selflessly place the poor and needy first. They are a strong sign of God’s Kingdom here on earth. Their lavish self-donation and generosity is a witness to the fact that Christ is still at work among us.

Today, Marco writes about meeting a young man we nicknamed "Marvelous Marvin" just a few weeks ago. You'll see why in just a moment. Marco also talks about his recent volunteerism ... “What filled my heart with joy the most was sharing little moments with these needy people. Personally, I haven't done anything that I deserve to be thanked. I did not give from my own. I just gave what [food] was there. I need to thank all of you for giving me the opportunity to understand many things. In two hours working with the homeless I saw things that before I only read about in the Bible. The people really touched my heart. There was a young homeless man, I do not recall his name, but I think it is Marvin. He did something that makes me still feel very touched. Marvin saw a poor old guy that was feeling cold and was asking for a sweater as he did not own anything to cover himself. A worker told him that clothing was distributed on Tuesday. The old man said he was cold now and he had to spend the night outside. Marvin, out of his own poverty stepped up to him and gave him the jacket off his back. It was a great lesson and reminded me of the poor widow in one of Jesus episodes in the New Testament, the one that gave to the Temple her last coin, all she had. I just thought to let all of you know about this story."

Volunteers just like Marco daily support many outreaches serving the poor all across America. In the trenches, they put compassion into action. For each of them, we are thankful. In the words of Christ, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.”

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