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Faith that feeds

CHARLOTTE — Parishioners of St. Matthew Church embrace Jesus’ call to serve the poor, sick and hungry through a dozen ministries targeting food insecurity here and around the world.

From daily trips to collect donated food from grocery stores, to delivering hot meals in at-risk neighborhoods, to its massive Monsignor McSweeney World Hunger Drive, thousands of volunteers live out the words of the Gospel of Matthew by providing countless tons of food to people living on the margins.

“We believe Jesus’ words that any act of kindness we do for the least of our brothers and sisters is an act we do unto Him,” says Antoinette Usher, St. Matthew’s chief operating officer. “We truly want to be the hands and feet of Jesus – and we always try to get our children involved so we are not just serving others today but are teaching the next generation to carry that on.”

“It really is astounding and heartwarming to see how seriously the people of St. Matthew respond to God’s call to help others. As one of the biggest parishes in the country, everything here seems magnified – and that means we can have a powerful impact in our mission to feed the hungry.”

— Father Patrick Cahill, new pastor of St. Matthew Parish

Monsignor McSweeney World Hunger Drive impacts the globe

More than 1,500 volunteers – including Bishop Michael Martin – put on hair nets and rolled up their sleeves Aug. 16 to pack food for the 23rd annual Monsignor McSweeney World Hunger Drive at St. Matthew Church.

The atmosphere at one of the nation’s largest Catholic parishes, which has 11,000 families, was jumping, with a DJ cranking up “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and more favorites as people sang while packing meals that will feed people locally and around the world.

“It’s so moving to see families working together,” said parishioner and co-ministry lead Steve Favory. “Grandparents and children with so much energy and excitement, taking time out of their busy schedules to help feed the poorest of the poor.”

Throughout the day, the crowd felt like a small community, which was exactly what the drive’s founding pastor, Monsignor John McSweeney, envisioned back in 2002.

“St. Matthew is a big operation,” said parishioner Colleen Shevsky. “That was Monsignor McSweeney’s thing – he wanted this massive church to feel like a small chapel.”

Over the past month, the community came together to raise $431,000. Funds are used for food, education and sustainability projects in impoverished countries. Locally, the campaign is addressing increased food insecurity by supporting food banks and providing financial support to western North Carolina, as it continues to recover from Tropical Storm Helene.

The culminating event, Saturday’s meal packing, was where food was assembled, boxed and trucked on 18-wheelers to a shipping container. The container then set out from Charlotte’s “country roads” to the dirt roads of India, Venezuela and Cuba to help feed those in need.

Parishioners were joined by community members, diocesan clergy and brothers from the Missionaries of the Poor monastery in Monroe, among others.

The work was split into four, two-hour shifts, each with 30 tables worked by 10 volunteers. Each person had a job, from scooping rice, dried vegetables and other ingredients into bags to weighing, sealing and packing them into cartons. Each table packed 12 boxes of 36 meal packs, and every shift ended with a prayer and a cooked sample of what they had prepared.

It was a first-time experience for some volunteers, including Bishop Martin, who joked with children and danced to “Sweet Caroline” while he weighed bags of food. For others, including Father Patrick Cahill, St. Matthew’s new pastor who was appointed in July, it was something they grew up doing.

“I did this with my children when they were growing up, and now, we bring the grandchildren,” volunteer Mary Pat Nanney explained, gesturing toward Carson and Emery, 6 and 9. “It’s just something fun and easy to do and a way to teach them to help others who are less fortunate.”

The day meant even more to volunteer Will Kennedy, who has met the people the event will help during mission trips.
“Going to Haiti was a life-changer; malnourishment over there looks different,” Kennedy said. He was one of hundreds of yearlong volunteers working behind the scenes to help bring the drive to life.

St. Matthew previously sent its food containers to Haiti but shifted to Cuba this year due to the political climate. Funding, however, will be wired to the Missionaries of the Poor and St. Marc Catholic School in Haiti so they can purchase food locally.

“This drive builds a bridge of hope from our parish to the millions facing food insecurities globally,” Favory said, “with (some) money and food kept here to support our local brothers and sisters.”

Mel’s Diner keeps on trucking food into Farm Pond

Volunteers from Mel’s Diner serve residents of Charlotte’s Farm Pond community Aug. 23. Food comes from local restaurants, grocery stores and the kitchens of volunteers. (Troy C. Hull)It’s 7 a.m. on Saturday and St. Matthew volunteers are already cooking hot meals they’ll package and deliver to one of Charlotte’s most economically challenged neighborhoods before lunchtime.

“We have served the Farm Pond community for over 18 years,” ministry leader Marianne Raispis says of the east Charlotte neighborhood. “We go where the need exists.”

Lead cook Gale Allocco runs the kitchen at St. Matthew, warming up food received from donors throughout the week and instructing new volunteers on how to assemble a food tray.

“Each box gets two proteins, two carbs and a veggie,” she says.

Throughout the week, volunteers pick up food from Trader Joe’s, Chick-fil-A and Whole Foods, and some parishioners bring in hot meals they toiled over throughout the week in their own kitchens.

Everything moves quickly. Trays are assembled, dishes are washed, meals are boxed in Styrofoam and then bagged – if the room had a tempo, it would be allegro.

Working in an adjacent room, other volunteers are also hustling – packaging hundreds of bags of food for nursing home residents living in the Farm Pond community.

Around 9:30 a.m., after prayer, everyone races to their vehicles and falls in line behind the gray-and-white box truck with “Mel’s Diner” emblazoned in orange on the side.

The drive from St. Matthew in Ballantyne to Farm Pond off Albemarle Road takes 30 minutes, the affluent suburban landscape slowly melting into aging apartment buildings.

Despite its rusty exterior, broken speedometer and finicky right turn signal, the Mel’s Diner food truck brings smiles to people waiting in the greenspace of the Farm Pond area.

Standing in line are 58 people from around the world, hailing from Burma, Ukraine, Latin America, India, Syria, the Middle East – and from right here in the neighborhood.

Residents express their gratitude with hugs, smiles and waves. Few words are exchanged, but the language of love is clear.

Most head home with as much as they can carry – cardboard boxes and bags filled to the brim with necessities. Even the children carry a heavy load, not leaving any precious cargo on the table, grabbing anything they can.

“The people you meet are grateful, but they are fighting for themselves. They have grown up in poverty and need food,” says Toni Springman, who volunteers almost daily.

“You give with grace without expecting in return.”

Our Daily Bread feeds neighbors in need all day, everyday

Shifts start early for Our Daily Bread volunteers such as Kevin Ryan, who visit local grocery stores and bakeries to pick up baked goods and then deliver them to community organizations and churches across Charlotte. (Troy C. Hull)As the sun rises, one of St. Matthew’s best-kept secrets begins to unfold.

With 104 volunteers working seven days a week, Our Daily Bread ministry gathers day-old bread and bakery items from 11 large retailers – including Costco, Harris Teeter, Publix and Amélie’s – then delivers the food to 56 local churches and organizations.

Co-led by retired FBI agent Rick Shaffer, Our Daily Bread provides more than 300 tons of food annually to people in need.

“They fly so under the radar, I am in awe of all the different people they help,” says Rossanna Alvarez, St. Matthew’s volunteer coordinator.

Shaffer says the ministry would welcome more help and praised the dedication of his volunteers.

On Thursdays, volunteer Kevin Ryan begins his day two hours before he goes to work.

“I don’t mind waking up a little early for this ministry, it helps so many,” says Ryan. “The early morning drive allows me to reflect on God’s love and spend time with Him before facing a hectic day.”

By 6:45 a.m., he is waiting at the loading-dock door behind Publix in Cotswold. Sometimes, they’ll roll out a shopping cart overflowing with artisan breads, cupcakes and pies, while other times, there may just be a couple of fruit tarts. Everything helps.

After loading his car, Ryan is off to Amélie’s on Central Avenue, where the bakers leave a bread rack filled with assorted items for him to grab.

At 7:30 a.m., he arrives at Plaza Baptist Church. Though it’s too early to see the hundreds of hands his food will reach, he is greeted with joy by the Plaza Pantry coordinator, whose team sorts everything into bags for local neighbors in need.

At his last stop, Eastway Regional Recreation Center, he helps unload his items onto folding tables where they will later be incorporated into children’s hot meals.

“Our motto,” Shaffer says, “has always been that hunger knows no religion and has no denomination. Hungry is hungry, and we absolutely enjoy helping in this way.”

Food pantry quietly serves the hungry and restores dignity

Volunteer Colleen Shevsky helps a shopper pack groceries at Mary’s Cupboard, which supplies 40 to 50 families each month with non-perishable pantry staples. (Troy C. Hull)Mary’s Cupboard is bright with fresh flowers and shelves neatly lined with non-perishable foods you would find in any grocery store. There’s a single shopping cart and a checkout area.

This is not a mini-mart but a small room at St. Matthew Church. The clerk is St. Matthew volunteer Colleen Shevsky, and the shopper is a single mother in need.

The food here is donated by parishioners. Volunteers keep products organized, so when each shopper arrives for their individual appointment, everything is accessible.

“This has 100% transformed my life and my daughter’s life,” the shopper says. “I save on average around $400 a month coming here.”

Mary’s Cupboard meets with 40 to 50 referrals each month. They shop for as many groceries as they need and also receive a $25 Harris Teeter gift card for fruits, vegetables and other fresh food they don’t stock.

“Our referrals all come in different shapes and sizes and with different life challenges,” Shevsky said.

For the shopper, who recently battled cancer, it took courage to seek help. Until now, she had always been the helper, the provider, the church volunteer who served others.

Her diagnosis turned a tight budget into a dire food insecurity.

“Everything hit all at the same time,” she says, “I was one of those that was very prideful, and it was a hard decision for me to make to come through the doors, but on the other side of it, Colleen just made it so easy.”

When she was particularly weak during treatment, the shopper says: “This lovely lady pushed my cart. This amazing human lifted the food off the shelves when I pointed to what I wanted.”

Today, the shopper is cancer-free and is considering joining the Church. She is still in recovery mode, but now she and Shevsky laugh like old friends who know how far things have come.

“I’ve sat here with her while she was destitute and encouraged her to keep going,” Shevsky says, “and it makes my heart happy to see how wonderful she’s doing.”

Additional food ministries

St. Matthew Parish offers a range of food ministries to serve those in need. For more information, go to www.stmatthewcatholic.org/feed.

•  Serve Charlotte’s Homeless: This ministry prepares and serves hot meals to the Charlotte Homeless Resource Center on the fourth and fifth Thursday of every month.
• Meal Bags to Go: Volunteers prepare and donate 400 bagged breakfasts and lunches each month for the Community Shelter of Union County.
• Francis Feast of Union County: Volunteers prepare and serve hot meals on the first Sunday of each month for the Community Shelter of Union County
• Friendship Trays: In partnership with Meals on Wheels, volunteers drive meals to the homes of elderly individuals. Each volunteer commits to a one-hour route once a month.
• Muffin Ministry: Parishioners each bake 24 fresh muffins for delivery to three homeless shelters.
• Waxhaw Food Collection for Union County: This ministry, based at the parish’s Waxhaw Campus, donates non-perishable items to the Community Shelter of Union County.
• Missionaries of the Poor and MOP Garden Ministry: Volunteers prepare and serve a monthly meal at the Missionaries of the Poor monastery in Monroe and assist with their garden.