Andy lost his wife to a heart attack the same day the world began to shut down in March of 2020. Navigating this loss while the world learned to live in isolation was just the beginning.
A few months later, he lost his dad. Then, he retired and lost his work community after 42 years.
“You can’t be alone when you deal with all this kind of stuff. We are physical, emotional, spiritual, intellectual, relational creations. My kids were filling the relational need but realized they couldn’t be it. They could steer me through with different resources and ideas they knew of, and they knew it wasn’t good to be hunkered down.”
His son brought up the idea of volunteering at Love – on Tuesdays.
“As much as I acted like I needed to get them through the loss of their mom, they were like, ‘No, dad. You need to do this. You really need to volunteer at Love,’ Sorting, recycling, computers. See the possibilities of where I could fit in. The possibilities were endless.”
Andy remembers sorting donations, and realizing he wasn’t alone.
“You can sort and not even talk to anyone. But you can still look to your right or your left and know that others are there. At any point you can stop and ask others- do you want to have a cup of coffee? It is so comforting. It is so empowering. It is – all of a sudden – you are taking a step.”
“The abundance of different resources and connectivity – it’s like there’s a steering point. It’s not an end point, it’s a stepping point. That’s what it was for me: Okay, get here. Remind yourself that you’re not alone.”
For over 40 years, Love has utilized the helping hands of volunteers like Andy. And many like him who are searching for community and a reminder that they aren’t alone.
“No one’s going to have the same story, the same experiences, the same history. But everyone’s looking for that reminder that they aren’t the only body in the room.”
Andy built a new network that broke through his isolation and allowed him to plug into his own community – and so many others like him have found purpose and fulfillment by doing something they love- at Love.
When Andy finally asked his son why he had to come on Tuesdays, he said, “well that’s the day I’m here and you can take me out for lunch.”
Learn more about Love’s volunteer opportunities here.
We’ll be sharing 40 stories of transformation leading up to our 40th Celebration Block Party on September 24th. Please join us!