by Rebecca Helberg, A Just Harvest Summer Intern
Editor’s Note: If you’d like to join us in celebrating these Volunteers of the Year at our 9th Annual Awards Banquet & Benefit, visit our home page for more information.
Bob Robinson, St. Giles Episcopal Church, Northbrook
After retiring as a patent council attorney in 1995, Bob Robinson began to give his time to A Just Harvest in 1998. As a Christian, Bob believes that one of his purposes in life is to give his time to help others. He delivers food about 8 times a month to 3 different organizations in the Chicagoland area as a representative of St. Giles Church. On Wednesday Bob comes to A Just Harvest to drop off food from various donors including Sunset Foods, a large contributor in Northbrook. He became involved with A Just Harvest when Polly Badger asked him to be the director of the soup kitchen ministry.
One of Bob’s favorite connections is the ability to take excess meat from A Just Harvest and deliver it to New Life Baptist Church on the south side. A Just Harvest receives more produce and New Life is able to receive a much needed shipment of meat. Bob remembers what struck him the most when he first started volunteering at A Just Harvest (then named the Good News Community Kitchen) was he was not aware of how many people in the area were in need of assistance. He also finds is amazing that A Just Harvest has expanded its services to community organizing and economic development.
Bob began volunteering in Philadelphia in 1959 through Big Brothers. Since then he has held various leadership positions in Kiwanis in both the Chicago Lakeview and downtown chapters, recorded stories for the blind and dyslexic, and lead adoption procedures pro bono. Bob has a wife, 3 children, and 7 grandchildren. In his free time he loves to read, watch baseball, and tend to his tomato plants. Bob is both a Red Sox and Cubs fan after living both on the East Coast and Midwest and also had a friendly relationship with baseball star Ted Williams. Bob loves devoting his time to charitable organizations and A Just Harvest has truly benefited from all of his hard work.
Kathy Cole, North Shore United Methodist Church, Glencoe
Kathy Cole, a social worker in Northfield, has been taking on many different roles in her 7 years volunteering with A Just Harvest. She has done the food shopping, cooked, and served to the patrons of the Community Kitchen. As a member of the North Shore United Methodist Church, Kathy enjoys coming with her church four or five times a year on the fifth Wednesday of the month. North Shore UMC brings chicken, rice, corn, fruit salad, cookies, lettuce, and ranch dressing from Costco.
Kathy has a passion for social services and enjoys being at AJH because there is a respect for the clientele and dignity in the Community Kitchen. She knows that the food is good, people are eating, and that the atmosphere is full of caring community members at AJH. She views AJH as following through with an important commitment of feeding those that are hungry. Kathy loves to volunteer at AJH with her two daughters and husband.
Kathy believes hunger is an important issue to tackle because it is a basic human right. She enjoys working to make sure that people are provided with basic needs such as food and housing.
Kathy is originally from Ohio and moved to Chicago in 1974. She currently lives in Glencoe and loves to travel, read and garden in her free time.
Gail Potter, Trinity United Methodist, Wilmette
Gail Potter has been volunteering at A Just Harvest for over a year and a half and has had a truly rewarding experience. Shortly after joining Trinity United Methodist Church, Gail was asked by meal coordinator Sarah Jacobs to donate her time and has consistently been volunteering since then at the Community Kitchen. As an involved Trinity Church member, Gail enjoys attending and organizing church events. Whether it is helping plan the summer ice cream social or doing odds and ends around Trinity, Gail does what she can to help the Trinity Church community.
Gail loves working behind the kitchen counter and appreciates the patrons thanking volunteers. The intimate interaction and mutual respect for all those involved in the Community Kitchen is what Gail loves about A Just Harvest. The friendly conversation and tolerance that is seen at the kitchen is what keeps Gail coming back.
Fighting hunger is important to Gail because she believes that in the United States, Americans should take care of their own and do what they can to eradicate the widespread problem of hunger. Gail thinks it’s significant to see the face of hunger and open up one’s eyes to the obstacles that many encounter. Gail has always enjoyed working with head chef Rosario and making sure that the details that happen behind the counter are not forgotten. Gail and fellow Trinity volunteers sing spiritual hymns while preparing and serving the delicious food.