06/04/2026
"I cook for all the seniors in my building. I’ve been coming to the Center for Self Reliance for awhile now – at least six years, since I moved into my apartment. It took me a long time to get there.
I used to sleep outside behind the Home Depot. Wouldn’t go into the shelter because I wanted to keep my cat. I bottle fed that cat. But eventually, I went inside.
I was in the shelter for one year and eight months, and then I moved into this apartment building. Within eighteen months, everyone knew who I was. I got another cat.
This building is full of seniors who have no one. No one comes to visit them. They seem to be forgotten. But not me. I knock on doors, I put the word out. People know now. They come to me when they need a good meal.
I cook for everyone. One gentleman downstairs, he started crying when I knocked on his door with a birthday cake. Said he hadn’t seen one in years. I bring meals to some of the homeless behind the church, too, sometimes.
Why do I do it? Because my mother didn’t bring us up to be cold hearted towards people. Because I know what it’s like to be homeless and to feel like no one cares. If I’ve got it, I give it. No one goes hungry on my watch.
When I come here to the Center for Self Reliance, I get plenty for myself, and it’s not easy to feed me. I have medical issues, Crohn’s disease. There’s a lot I can’t eat. But I can always fill up here. They’ve got safe foods for me.
I’m grateful to be able to share. This food doesn’t just feed me. It feeds my whole community. I’m just the cook.”
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Donna shared her story with Community Action staff and gave permission for us to share her words and photo.
This month, we'll be sharing stories from folks who get food at our Center for Self Reliance food pantries in Greenfield and West County. Support our pantries here and help keep our neighbors fed: https://communityaction.networkforgood.com/projects/300009-2026-keep-our-neighbors-fed
