Nurturing a New Generation of Volunteers

Several residents at Holiday Hidden Lakes Senior Living aren’t slowing down in their retirement. Instead, they stay active and engaged by volunteering every week at Marion Polk Food Share’s warehouse, sorting and repacking food for our neighbors facing hunger. Maureen, also known as “Mo,” is a Holiday Hidden Lakes resident who has dedicated much of her life to giving back to the Salem community.

“It’s important to me because it brings meaning to my life to know how helpful it is to those who are in need,” Mo said.

Now she’s passing on the joy of volunteerism to her 9-year-old grandson, Oliver. He and Mo come to the Food Share during the summer months when he’s out of school.

“It’s a way for us to build our relationship in doing something together, which is also meaningful,” Mo said. “It is a time to talk, laugh, get to know each other in a different way, and appreciate each other’s abilities and life stories.”

Mo is visually impaired, but with some help from Oliver, she’s able to stay engaged — proving that it’s possible to improve our community during every season of life.

“Oliver has learned what it means to help the community for folks who need food assistance,” Mo said. “I believe that all of what we do is based in relationships — relationships not just with people we know, but with people we want to get to know better, and folks we do not know but we know are in need.”

Thanks to your generosity, people like Mo and Oliver can volunteer time after time to support their neighbors across Marion and Polk counties.