A UMNS Feature
By John Gordon*
Oct. 28, 2009 | RAYMONDVILLE, Texas

When military veterans who fought in World War II, Southeast Asia and Korea have trouble putting food on the table, a Texas church steps in to help.

Members of First United Methodist Church of Raymondville open their food pantry once a month to veterans. The church works in partnership with the local American Legion chapter to provide food to about 30 vets and their families.

“There’s a lot of people in this part of the (Rio Grande) Valley that need something like this to help themselves,” says Louis Castillo, 88, one of those helped by the program. “Some of them don’t even have money to buy food.”

Castillo served three years in the Marines during World War II and later became supervisor of a sign shop for the Texas Department of Transportation.

Church members saw the need in an area where the Rev. Janna Hawes says some homes have dirt floors and lack indoor plumbing. Hawes says Willacy County, less than an hour’s drive from the Mexico border, is statistically one of the poorest in the U.S.

“Some of the veterans that have come here are struggling to try to help their families. Some of the disabled veterans are raising their grandchildren,” says Hawes.

“Watching them struggle, it really touches my heart, because they have sacrificed so much,” she says.

Carol Godwin, a church member who volunteers as coordinator of the food pantry, gives a warm welcome to the veterans as she hands out sacks filled with deli turkey breasts, beans, rice and spaghetti. The vets also receive canned goods from the food pantry.

“We think we’ve seen everything,” says Godwin. “And each month, there’s something new, somebody else that touches our heart that really needs our help.”

Nolasco Chavez, 80, receives not just food—but affirmation—from the volunteers. Chavez served three years in the Army after World War II and was called back to active duty during the Korean War.

“I feel good,” he says. “Because lots of people, they thank us for what we did.”

Such affirmation was long in coming for Rafael Cisneros, an Air Force veteran who serves as co-chairman of the food bank.

“I feel bad coming back from Southeast Asia,” he says. “Because at the time, there was a lot of people against Vietnam veterans.”

The food pantry began operating two years ago for veterans. Last year, it expanded and opened its doors to the community. Veterans still get priority during the monthly food distribution.

In the past year, demand for the food has tripled. The pantry now serves more than 300 families each month. They begin lining up outside the church hours before the food distribution begins.

“It’s the economy, I’m sure,” says Godwin.

George Solis, commander of the American Legion chapter that co-sponsors the food pantry, speaks of the program with pride.

“We do a lot of other projects in the community,” he says. “But this is, by far, our best program that we have.”

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Hawes says the project has given church members a greater appreciation for the sacrifices made by veterans.

“We’ve been changed through it and I think we’ve grown through it,” she says. “And it’s given me a different kind of a perspective on who these people are.”

Felipe Cruz, 65, a disabled Army veteran, says the food pantry “helps me a lot.” Cruz dropped out of school and joined the Army to help his mother, a single parent, and his brothers and sisters.

But Cruz never regretted that decision, saying, “I was proud to serve and I would do it again.”

*Gordon is a freelance producer and writer based in Marshall, Texas.

News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk@umcom.org.

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