Caitlyn’s Story.

I started volunteering at the Dream Center back in 2013, a couple of months after it opened its doors. I was attending Cross Point at the time, and one Sunday myself and a friend decided to see how we could help. That one Sunday turned into me helping with kids for a few years more weeks than not. Each Sunday was spent with kids at the building on Delaware or jumping in the van or bus to go pick them up. At that point, I also joined a small group (that TJ put together :D), and to this day, most of us still get together.

My career had me traveling a lot, and life took me away from regularly volunteering at the Dream Center for several years. My husband and I continued to contribute, but life did not allow us to contribute time. Or so we thought. We had a son, Silas, in 2018 and a daughter, Evie, in 2020. Silas had some minor health issues, but our daughter, Evie, was born with a few congenital heart defects that required lifesaving open heart surgery at 2 weeks old and again at 6 months old. She spent the better part of her first year in the hospital and there were times we didn’t know if she would make it. She is thriving now and the support we had through those really hard seasons is like nothing we had ever experienced.

As we were beginning to see the light, it was then that I decided that life isn’t going to ever get ‘easy’ or ‘allow for more time’. We needed to make the time to volunteer. It is the least we can do, and it doesn’t take much. Silas, who is 3, looks forward to picking up the food every week and seeing everyone packing their boxes. He makes sure everything gets weighed properly and is placed where it belongs. It takes an hour or two each week and results in giving back and lifelong lessons. We have been regularly helping with food rescue for the last several months and hope to start contributing more time this year. Silas has made friends, just like I have, and truly understands the importance of our contribution.