A Pair of Shoes Could Save Someone’s Life

My Mom: “I Strive to Be as Giving as Her”

Hannah Cooper is a senior at Central Catholic High School and a Blanchet House Student Ambassador. She frequently volunteers in the community with her mom Traci Hambly. Hannah shared how her mom inspires her to help others.

“She taught me to always help out those around you because one day you may need their help as well,” Hannah says about her mom. “She also taught me to be kind and lend a helping hand to anyone because you don’t know a person’s background or struggles, so always be willing to help those around you.”

Hannah and her mom have been volunteering together since she was 7-years-old. She likes serving alongside her because it’s a way for them to bond and become closer.

 “Whenever we volunteer together she always adds a bit of spice to the activity and no matter what service we do, it’s always a blast with her around,” Hannah says. “My mom helps out everybody around her in her daily. She is very much a giver, so every day I see her do small acts of kindness like the other day she helped an older lady put her groceries in her car. She does so much for those around her, strangers and non-strangers, and I strive to be as giving and as helpful as her.”

Devon Malone, Volunteer Chef

Devon, a chef at Urban Farmer steakhouse, volunteered his time in Blanchet’s kitchen while restaurants were shut down because of COVID19.

“I was homeless for a while when I was young. I found myself struggling to find food pretty often. It caused me to put myself in dangerous situations. I wasn’t lost in substance abuse but I was lost in depression and lack of self-worth. When you get that far away from society it almost becomes impossible to integrate back in. It was a struggle to get a job without an address and to get an address without a job.

No person is an island. No individual has attained any amount of stability without someone else just as no one can help themselves off the streets alone. Each person out there is tangled in their own trap. They need assistance to find ways to loosen those tangles that knot up their mind. I’m thankful for the help I got when I was tangled and lost. I’m thankful that I was able to find a way to be helpful while the Covid-19 pandemic has been upon us. Volunteering has been a very positive experience.”

Katy Fackler, Volunteer Beekeeper 

“Learning new skills, being present in nature, and doing meaningful work are core reset and recovery tools for all of us,” Katy says.

Bees bring hope and healing to Blanchet Farm thanks to master beekeeper Katy Fackler. The delivery of four handmade yellow bee boxes and hundreds of live bees has been months in the making, due to coronavirus slowing things down. The goal of the new beekeeping program is to offer the men at the farm a productive activity that will build soft job skills, self-worth, and generate extra income for the farm. Beekeeping is a relaxing hobby that is beneficial to both those in recovery and the environment. There is a large body of research that shows the benefits of beekeeping to people with mental health problems such as stress, anxiety, and depression. Some even call the past time “beekeeping therapy.”

“I’m very glad we kept going on this project despite the pandemic. Faith in the future and for better times is the only way we are getting past this,” Fackler says. “For me, [the delivery of the hives] felt like a celebration after months of planning.” Read more >>

Michael “Angel,” artist and meal guest

“My girlfriend and I are collecting these lunch bags with beautiful designs and sayings on them to make a collage. We love the sayings that are on the bags because they give us a ray of hope. For a child to actually go through and draw and put these sayings on these bags for people like me is amazing. They don’t know is how showing one ounce of kindness is going to make someone feel.

I was once told that if you can change one person’s life it’s like a rippling effect. You can be one pebble in a pond sending positive ripples to affect someone’s life. The more stones you throw in like these bags the sooner or later you will touch the shore of someone’s life. Instead of having all the negative things in someone’s life, you’re giving them something positive. Thank you we love them.”

Support our meal program so people like Michael will have something positive in their lives.

LaRae Miller, Peer Support Specialist with MHAAO

LaRae Miller specializes in helping people with addictions, specifically opiate addiction, find resources and support. She spends a few days a week speaking to Blanchet House meal guests waiting in line.

“I interact with people while they wait in line for food, answer questions the best I can, and see if I can I provide resources. I really love getting out and interacting with people, just listening to them laugh, providing them with any information they might need or want.

Honestly, I love the whole experience. Most everyone waiting in line for food is very polite and wanting to engage in conversation, I absolutely love it.

These are people too. They are probably some of the nicest, most interesting people I’ve ever met. Remember to treat everyone with kindness.”

Father Gary Smith, Jesuit

Father Gary, as he’s called around Blanchet House, stays onsite two nights a week to offer a listening ear to our residents building new lives. He reminds us that the purpose of our charity is to “restore visibility to the invisible.” We are here to serve the “invisible people” who live on the edges of our society.

He asks himself, “What can I do. What do I have in my arsenal of human qualities that I can share with people?”

Fr. Gary’s words reflect our mission to affirm the essential humanity in each person we serve. This is what we strive to do each day at Blanchet House. And our work has never been more important as people suffer greatly due to the public health and economic crisis of this pandemic.

Please join us in restoring visibility to people by supporting our work in ways that you can.

Stacee Scott, Volunteer 

“​I serve coffee and water just about every morning. I’m a special ed teacher although I’ve been on a short break. I look forward to returning to the classroom once schools open up again. 

​I’m concerned for the people we serve. Everything is shut down. Where are they going to get water? A warm beverage on a chilly morning, food, clean clothing, etc? I’m a big cheerleader for people who are often “set aside” or otherwise overlooked. Meal guests tell me, ‘I appreciate you being here for us.’ ​ 

So often it’s me who feels appreciative to have the opportunity to help a large group of people that might otherwise not have many options to get a great cup of coffee. It is really good coffee!  It’s an honor that I personally hold in great esteem to be able to help out our community in this way. ​We all have the same basic needs. We all have value. There are some amazing people that I have gotten to know through the coffee line and I really look forward every morning to seeing them.”

Carmen G, meal guest

As a House of Hospitality, we want everyone who enters our doors to feel welcomed. Our meal guests, like Carmen G., share in creating an atmosphere of peace and enjoyment. Carmen, who frequents our cafe, is beloved by staff and guests for her sweet disposition.

“I like the people here. It’s kind of like going to a really fancy hotel for a meal,” she said one evening. “It makes me feel good. It makes me feel like Blanchet cares more.”

Carmen is currently homeless and often sleeps on the bus or MAX at night to stay safe and warm. After suffering a stroke as a child she was left with a disability that keeps her from being able to work. She is looking for housing but her income is restrictive. “I want to find something that is long-term but it’s tricky,” she said.

Support our meal program. >>

Josi Whitney

“I’m a self-employed hairstylist so my business has been shut down.

I’ve been volunteering at Blanchet House since the beginning of the cafe closure [due to the governor’s stay-home order] on March 17th. I received an email that the Blanchet House needed help, and since my regular volunteering in Vancouver has been canceled, I was available! I usually volunteer for lunch.

My favorite quote from a meal guest is, ‘Last night we were all talking about how much we appreciated everything all of you do for all of us. It means the world to us, thank you.’

The people served here are very grateful, especially now. We are definitely seeing a lot of new faces. I feel fortunate to be part of such a wonderful place and group of people to work with, I truly look forward to being there.”