A cooler full of fresh vegetables

They Have a Heart for You: Wai's Story

It is Wai’s second time at Community Emergency Services (CES)’s Food Shelf, and she already feels welcome.

“I’m not a person who likes to ask for help,” she says.

Wai had discovered that CES Food Shelf provides free food through the CES website and was looking for a way to find fresh and nutritious food while also making her budget go a bit further.

“I’m a single mother, and I also take care of my brother. They don’t have much income, and [this is] somehow and someway I can help provide. Food is getting so expensive, so the onion and carrots here can help.”

Wai’s 23-year-old son has autism, and he can be very particular about what type of food he eats. “He only drinks organic milk, things like that. I can get him food here and it helps a lot. I can spend the extra money at the co-op. It helps me help him.”

“I want his mental and physical parts to function well, so he can be a productive person in society.”

As a bonus, the produce that Wai has brought home from CES has a stamp of approval from her son. “I brought salad home, and he said, ‘This is a good one!’”

Good food is not only a comfort to her son, but to Wai as well. “I like to cook my food—Chinese food. I can get a good noodle and Chinese vegetables here. I like noodle soup—it’s very healthy. It helps me feel stronger! It helps me feel good.”

“I have times where I spend money on a restaurant, and I feel miserable because I didn’t enjoy it! I’m just happy to cook my food. I always use onions to make my soup base, and my stir fry.”

Second Harvest Heartland is proud to provide fresh produce—like Wai’s onions—to CES’s Food Shelf to help neighbors prepare some of their favorite dishes.

“[CES] is very welcoming,” says Wai. “They have a heart for you. And they have a hope for you.”