Age: 15
The Christian Care Center wasn’t a bad place to live. It went on lockdown sometimes, but it provided her mom with enough time and resources to get back on her feet. The Care Center was also where she heard about the pantry for the first time. It has really come in handy since her uncle and two cousins came to live with her and her mother. It is nice to have her cousins around, but she is often counted on to baby sit, which is what she is doing today as she sits at the back of the lobby waiting for her number to be called. She sits slumped down in the chair with her arms crossed as she watches her cousin play over in the corner.
I’m nervous as I approach her. It is always a struggle for me to start these conversations. As I step out of the back office into the lobby I feel the discomfort moving out from my gut to the rest of my body. I don’t want to make anyone uncomfortable which is why I am so glad to see her look up and smile as I approach. Softly she agrees to sit down and share her story with me. She seems shy, and doesn’t really seem used to others asking about her, but when I start asking questions she settles in and her smile only seems to get bigger causing her eyes to scrunch up into small slits which hide her laughing gaze.
She goes to one of the wealthiest high schools in the district, but she doesn’t feel uncomfortable going to a more affluent school. She tells me how good it is to be in a place where teachers push her to learn. Her mother is pushing her too. She is hoping that Deborah will consider a career in engineering. It makes sense because of her love for geometry, but what she really would like to do is be an actress. I struggle to keep my thoughts to myself. I want to tell her to listen to her mother. I want to tell her how uplifting it would be to see a young black woman break out of the cycle of poverty and pursue a career in a field dominated by white men. But I let the moment pass and move onto the next set of questions leaving her to dream of a life on the stage.
Maybe it’s her desire to be on the stage someday, but her shy demeanor does not keep her from sharing her opinion on the city’s situation. She knows for a fact that hunger is a problem in the city because she sees the way it affects her neighbors. The way she sees it, the problem is publicity. More flyers and commercials could attract attention to the problem and also inform people of the organizations like the food pantry that are trying to help. “Some people don’t even know there is a pantry. There is lots of good stuff and there are lots of good people who reach out to you and there are people here who you can reach out to.” I ask Deborah if she has anything else to say and she slips back into the hesitance that she had when she first sat down. She lowers her eyes and says, “No.” As I express my thanks for her openness we both stand up and head for door. She turns her head to acknowledge my words and I can’t help but notice her face; two eyes scrunched into slits hiding two dancing pupils and that same big smile running from ear to ear.
To learn more about the work of the Rock River Valley Food Pantry visit their website or call them at (815) 965-2466
No Comments Yet
No comments yet.
Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI
Leave a comment
