The Woman’s Club of Raleigh has been providing meals at the Helen Wright Center for many years. I became involved with the Helen Wright Center about three years ago when I agreed to coordinate the meals for the Woman’s Club. My first visit along with 2 other volunteers to serve a meal made me realize that the Helen Wright Center is more than a shelter for women.
It is amazing to me all of the services that are taken on by each woman’s case manager. Everything from helping them get identification to treatment for any health related issues.
The first night I volunteered I met this vivacious lady who was in the shelter for a month or so. She was quite willing to tell me her story as you see everyone there has a story.
She told me she had gotten mixed up with drugs and had recently gotten out of rehab in Atlanta. Before long she was back with her old friends and started using drugs again. It dawned on her that in order for her to be successful and stay clean she would have to get new friends.
She decided to move to Charlotte where she had family. While on the train she fell asleep and missed her stop and woke up in Raleigh at the train station. Having no place to live she soon learned about the Helen Wright Center.
Since coming to Helen Wright, she had been able to find a job in health care and was looking forward to moving into her own apartment. Several months later when we returned to serve a meal there she was smiling and looking very happy. She was excited to let me know she had moved into her own apartment and was working.
Now she returned most afternoons and volunteered at the shelter encouraging others to have hope and being an example for them.
As we spoke I was reminded that hope is a precious thing, something not everyone has and how wonderful it is to have it restored. The Helen Wright Center lives up to the Urban Ministries mission, Restoring Lives, Restoring Hope.
I love being a part of the Helen Wright Center. I realize it is not about the food we bring.
It is about feeding our own souls through service to others.
