A volunteer at our shelter recently prepared dinner for our shelter guests. While this volunteer has helped out with many other things at the shelter, this was the first time they’d cooked dinner at Nest. The volunteer asked if they could share their experience with the Nest audience in today’s blog post, and we thought that would be an excellent idea. Please enjoy this guest post from a Nest volunteer who wishes to remain anonymous.
For me, food is love. Whenever I am scared or anxious, my mind drifts to my happy place, my kitchen. In this thought, I usually cook, laugh, and prepare something delicious for my family and friends. I guess it would be fair to say that food is my love language. More precisely, cooking for others is my love language. When I was at Nest’s open house last Saturday, I couldn’t help but overhear that there was a need for a volunteer to cook dinner earlier in the week. Another volunteer stepped up right away and said they’d cook dinner, and I heard myself blurt out, “I’ll come too!” While I love to cook, and I like to think I am decent at it, I’d never cooked for 30+ people. My fellow volunteer, the Nest executive director, and I ventured down into the kitchen after the open house to plan what we’d serve for our scheduled evening. The three of us took stock of what was in the freezer and pantry and planned dinner- pasta with meat sauce, a vegetable or salad, and homemade garlic bread.
I left the open house and raced home to tell my spouse that I was going to cook dinner for the shelter one night. As the day of my dinner shift rolled around, I had a hard time concentrating, thinking about how honored I was to be able to cook dinner for the shelter guests. I was going to demonstrate care for my fellow neighbors, community members, and human beings through food. Over the weekend, I’d thought a lot about what it would be like to experience homelessness at this time of year. With the holidays upon us and the weather turning chilly, I imagine this time of year weighs heavier on the minds of those experiencing homelessness, not just due to the holidays, but the weather is such a huge factor as well.
I arrived for my shift to cook dinner with my fellow volunteer in the late afternoon. The wind outside was already biting, and it sent a chill through me as I walked into the shelter. I thought of those who I’d be feeding that night, that while I couldn’t stop the cold wind for them, I could warm them with a good meal cooked with love and care. My fellow volunteer and I began our work. I offered to cook the meat sauce and pasta while my counterpart began the homemade garlic bread. Cooking at this scale was entirely new for me, and I suddenly found that all the confidence I’d walked into the kitchen with felt a little shaky. It wasn’t my pride that made me question my ability; it was the desire to feed the shelter guests something genuinely delicious.
With a whoosh of the gas burner, the cooking began. I browned the onions and added spices as I usually would for my family, saying a silent little prayer that the food would nourish the shelter guests’ bodies and souls. My fellow volunteer and I talked and laughed as we cooked dinner together. We discussed our upcoming holidays, what we’d eat, and the gifts we planned to give. While the conversation was delightful, in the back of my mind, it illustrated even more how difficult this time of year must have been for Nest’s guests. As dinner cooked away, my tensions began to ease as the scents of cooking dinner smelled familiar and delicious. I grew more excited as parts of the meal finished. The pasta was perfect, the garlic bread looked delicious, and the sauce was bubbling away, giving off the rich meatiness of the best Italian gravy.
As the sauce was finishing up, my fellow volunteer and I realized that the shelter had not been given salad that day. So, we worked together to create a full dinner for the guests. We went back into the pantry and found the ingredients for a green bean casserole, complete with fried onions on top. A mixed fruit cocktail rounded out our meal.
We poured the pasta into the serving dishes, then the meaty marinara sauce on top, and finished it with a layer of cheese. My mouth watered, and I was overcome with emotion. The guests would have a great dinner that my fellow volunteer and I had prepared. We covered the serving dishes and popped the hot dishes into the oven so they’d stay warm until dinner was served, and then we tidied up the kitchen.
Before we left that evening, we ran upstairs to the men’s floor to let the staff know that dinner was ready for them when they were prepared to serve. The male guests at the shelter were beginning their nightly check-in. A cold wind blew in from behind them as the smell of dinner swirled through the shelter. My heart was full because I knew that these weary men and women were in for a great dinner that night, as they are for every night at Nest.
I was so honored to be able to cook for the guests at Nest. I left the shelter that night with a giant smile on my face because it wasn’t about me or what I’d done that night; it was about the guests. When I got home to my family, they asked me how it went, and I answered honestly that I have never been more honored or had more fun than I did cooking for Nest’s guests.
I wanted to share my experience of volunteering with Nest with the community because I wanted others to know what an extraordinary place Nest is. If you are unsure about volunteering, don’t hesitate to take the leap and sign up. You won’t regret it. While this time of year must be incredibly difficult to experience homelessness, it takes additional community engagement to show our neighbors at Nest that we care for them, too, in our community.
