A Community of Gratitude

November 27th, 2023 | News

We are thankful for the wonderful volunteer community that provides guest families with the comforts of home during the holiday season. Whether it’s making the House festive, a savory meal or sweet treat, the volunteer community at RMHC-Madison brightens the days of families experiencing these challenging times with little reminders of home.

A lot goes into preparing holidays for more than 100 guests and this Thanksgiving is no exception, thanks to the dedication of volunteers like Jill Weber and Christine Powell. Every Thanksgiving for the past 10 years, Jill bakes homemade pies from scratch. This year guest families were treated to a variety of mouth-watering pies, including pumpkin, apple and cherry. “I love to bake. So, I love to come and do this to give back to others,” says Jill.

Another tradition at the House is Thanksgiving dinner provided by volunteer Christine Powell. With the House full and extended family coming to visit, Thanksgiving dinner in the kitchen is bursting at the seams. “We have so much food, we run out of horizontal places to put everything,” says Christine.  She recounts that preparing the Thanksgiving meal each year is one of her favorite volunteer activities.

Also stepping up to help families at the start of the holiday season are countless volunteer meal groups that come in to make sure families have a warm, homecooked meal every night of the month. “Before the pandemic, our meal calendar was full for months on end. We are just now beginning to experience that consistency again and it’s such a blessing for families,” says House Director, Michael Rosenblum. A special thanks to some of our regulars who helped make meals this month: Home Connection Realty, UW Credit Union, EUA and Thermo Fisher.

It’s a special time of year when volunteers step in to create holiday memories. We couldn’t be more thankful for the countless friends who make this House a home away from home for so many.