When Desiree first walked through our doors, she was a young mother struggling to feed her family. “I started to use Urban Ministries’ services when my daughter was five,” she remembers. “I wasn’t working at the time. I lost my job, so I came here to make sure we had food.”
Life wasn’t easy. Soon after, Desiree lost another job when her children all came down with chickenpox at the same time. “It was a domino effect in my household,” she shared. “But when I was hungry, I could come here. My family was able to eat because of Urban Ministries, and it was truly a blessing. A weight was lifted off our shoulders.”
The Food Pantry helped put meals on her family’s table. The Open Door Clinic provided lifesaving medications she could not afford on her own. “At the time I was taking seven different blood pressure medicines. I thank God for this pharmacy, because I was able to come here and get help. I didn’t have money.”
Today, Desiree’s health has improved, and she is down to just three medications. And now, she is giving back as a volunteer in the very pantry that once fed her children. Her daughter recently told her, “Ma, it’s so great that you volunteer there now. I remember when we ate from there.”
For Desiree, Urban Ministries has always been a place of hope. “To be able to get medical help, to get food to add to what you have and don’t have, is a blessing. I appreciate this place, that’s why I volunteer now. Whenever I come, my spirit is lifted.”
Stories like Desiree’s are only possible because of caring supporters like you. Every dollar you give ensures that families in Wake County can put food on the table and access the healthcare they need.
