Loyal came to Table to Table because he had heard a report on NPR about how food insecurity was being exacerbated by the pandemic, and he wanted to find a way to jump in and help. Loyal started volunteering here in October of 2020 and has been busy helping out ever since, volunteering twice a week, helping out both in the shop and on food rescue routes. In fact, on more than one occasion, Loyal has gotten back from his route and stayed to lend a hand in the shop because he saw that we could use more help. We are grateful for his time and talent and know that he is having a positive impact on our community. Thanks Loyal!
Fun Facts about Loyal
What’s one of your favorite memories from your time volunteering with Table to Table? My route partner, Eliza, and I once picked up a bit over 1,700 pounds in one trip! It’s definitely not the all-time record, but it sure stood out to me as a great morning.
What is one of your favorite food memories?
I really liked the movie It (Stephen King) when I was a kid, so when I was in the fourth grade, my mom made me a Pennywise birthday cake, complete with the clown nose, fangs, and crazy hair.
What are your hobbies?
When the weather is nice, I enjoy spending my free time geocaching, but if I’m stuck inside, you’ll probably find me crocheting.
Steve Gallagher doesn’t know a stranger. He loves to get to know new people and engage in discussion – as he says himself, one thing people would be surprised to learn about him is that he is in fact “capable of having a brief conversation!” (but we greatly enjoy our long chats with him). He began volunteering with Table to Table two years ago and “never looked back,” quickly forming many friendships and becoming an indispensable part of the team.
Steve spends much of his time helping to lead our Straight Truck Program. We utilize our 26-foot refrigerated straight truck (affectionately referred to as “The Big Truck”) to rescue 900,000 pounds of food each year. Steve volunteers as one of our truck drivers, and he is also in charge of training new drivers as well as overseeing routine maintenance. He brings 40 years of experience as a driver for Hawkeye Foodservice/US Foods to his volunteer role.
Steve delivers food to CommUnity Food Bank, February 2020.
Steve first learned of T2T through another volunteer, Dick Braverman, and was curious to find out more about what we do, so he signed up to volunteer soon after leaving full-time employment. “I think many people might begin volunteering at T2T because they have some time available and would like to give back to the community,” Steve says. “What they may or may not realize is just how great the emotional reward can be for doing so. There may be ‘warm fuzzies’ you might not have expected.”
Steve’s work is essential in helping T2T rescue tons (literally) of good food each week. “The pandemic has driven home the point that anyone can experience food insecurity. To be a part of diverting food that would otherwise go to waste and helping diminish hunger in some measure is truly a valid mission.”
When Steve isn’t rescuing food, he’s enjoying one of his many hobbies: walking, hiking, bicycle riding, reading, birdwatching, going to live events at regional venues, keeping up with local and global current events, sharing a meal with friends, spending time with his grandchildren in Florida, or playing an “occasional, low-stakes slot machine.” Someday he would love to go on a multi-day trip by rail with his spouse.
One of his favorite food-related memories comes from when he was growing up with his three older siblings. “Our mom would bake us the cake of our choice for our birthday. Mine was always confetti angel food cake with maraschino cherry-flavored buttercream frosting. Yum!” This may be what kicked off his “chronic sweet tooth!”
We are very grateful to have Steve on board as a T2T volunteer and know that our Straight Truck Program is in good hands. If you see Steve around, make sure to tell him “thank you” for bringing his knowledge, enthusiasm, and humor to his work at T2T!
Michelle after a route last year that collected hundreds of cans of cheeseballs.
As we wrap up volunteer appreciation month, we can’t think of a better way to express our appreciation for our fantastic volunteers than by sharing stories from their T2T volunteer shifts in April. These stories illustrate volunteers’ resourcefulness, good humor, and enthusiasm to go above and beyond in the name of food rescue. We truly could not recover nearly 2.5 million pounds of food each year without them.
Just last weekend, volunteer Michelle Hills finished her regular food rescue route collecting a few hundred pounds of food. While she was out, another volunteer called in and couldn’t do their route. Michelle noticed when she got back from her regular route that nobody had recorded any donations for that route and offered to do that one too! Without her, we may have lost the opportunity to deliver more produce, meat, and a variety of other foods to Coralville Community Pantry that morning.
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Nancy pulls a cart full of food ready to load
Mary Palmberg and Nancy Weber picked up a huge haul at Walmart & Costco a couple of weeks ago. Mary says, “No surprise that we barely — and only due to our years of practice — fit all that frozen bakery and (heavy) frozen meat into the cooler section [of the van].” On top of that, they received lots of whole pineapples.
All loaded and charcoal briquettes to boot!
At the next stop, a couple of hundred pounds of charcoal briquettes! So, upon delivery, Mary made a deal: “We told Hải at the Coralville Pantry that she could have some of those nice pineapples if she took some charcoal briquettes…the number of pineapples dependent on the number of 20# bags of charcoal. She laughed — though she also took charcoal along with her pineapples.”
The good-natured flexibility of our partners to accept whatever crazy variety of food (and BBQ accouterments) that arrive on the truck is key to our success. “We were amazed that we’d passed off all the charcoal — and everything else — by the end of the route,” Mary says.
We’re impressed by the packing and sorting skills our veteran volunteers have. It’s an underrated talent that ensures no fruit is left behind!
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The staff help stack the second tower of cabbage into the van.
On another of what Mary calls an “exciting & rewarding day on the road”, it was looking like a “light” food rescue day with two carts of grocery, meat, and bakery…until a very helpful and friendly store employee, Taveon, led the team back to a cooler with towers of cabbage and bananas. So many, it warranted a call back to base to see if T2T had the capacity. After getting the affirmative, they had to do their magic again to fit everything in the van. On their way out, Mary asked about a cart of miscellaneous items including toys and Easter baskets that weren’t for sale anymore, so they took those too! Hải Huỳnh, Coralville Pantry Community Projects Coordinator, shared with the volunteers that those extra toys and gifts they asked for would be put in birthday bags for kids.
Mary and Nancy made stops at North Liberty Pantry and HACAP Head Start and then an additional stop at Shelter House where they delivered a box of bananas and quite a few cabbages. The cook was excited about preparing the cabbages for dinner that evening.
T2T recipient partners and our volunteers are truly remarkable, and it’s clear that the admiration is mutual. Mary and Nancy return from their route celebrating their interactions with Hải: “What a super (& strong!) woman she is!” and, “She’s fantastic!”
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Kenn packs healthy prepared foods into our boxes.
Kenn & Pat Bowen, volunteers since this past September, shared photos of their beautiful haul from New Pioneer Coop. Fresh veggies and healthy prepared foods were a welcome and delightful delivery that day!
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And finally, volunteer Charlotte Fairlie passed along an impactful message she received from a community member as she was picking up food at a stop on her route just a few days ago:
“A woman rolled down her window as she was pulling out of her parking space and said,
‘I just want to thank all of you for everything you are doing and all the work you put in. I have been in the position of having to use your services, and I want you to know how valuable it is and how much it’s appreciated.’”
As Charlotte says, “Her message is for all of us.”
Todd Widmer and Claire Widmer, father-daughter volunteer duo, joined T2T in the early stage of our pandemic response. Since then, Claire and Todd have shown great versatility and flexibility as they have helped out on some of our regular food rescue routes, jumped in on several of our special routes, and have helped on both weekdays and weekends. Claire and Todd have demonstrated a consistent desire to be a positive influence here in the Johnson County community, and we are thankful for all their help.
Occupations:
Todd: Registered Nurse at UIHC in Surgical and Neurosciences ICU
Claire: Junior in high school
Where are you from?
Iowa City
When did you begin volunteering with Table to Table?
July 2020
What’s one of your favorite memories from your time volunteering with Table to Table?
Every time we pick up and deliver a New Pioneer carrot cake, and the day we collected nearly 1600 pounds of food!
What is one thing you would tell new T2T volunteers when they’re first starting out?
They will be amazed about how much food we save.
What are your hobbies?
Todd: Watching and attending sporting events. Traveling. Family time.
Claire: Soccer, show choir and choir, flute, reading, traveling
If you could travel anywhere in the world, where would you want to go?
Todd: Réunion Island
Claire: Australia
What is your favorite flavor of ice cream (or favorite dessert)?
