A lot of people helped me on my way to where I am today, so now I just help somebody else,” Joaquin explains.
This seems to be Joaquin’s life mission — to help others.
Joaquin started volunteering at our Garden City warehouse earlier this year. The opening of this facility has expanded volunteer opportunities, and volunteers help assemble Food 4 Kids packets, bag produce, build food boxes and help place nutritious food into the hands of our neighbors.
“I was looking for a place or an organization that I could be part of,” Joaquin says.
Growing up, Joaquin was told by a guidance counselor that he wasn’t college-bound, but he went on to earn a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree. He helped students dream of new possibilities for themselves. He shares that one of his proudest achievements was starting a local high school soccer program.
“That [program] kept a lot of kids from dropping out,” Joaquin says. “Once [the kids] found out there were scholarships, and that they could do the academic work, many… became teachers, nurses, even doctors.”
For people looking to volunteer, Joaquin says, “Come over with me. Try it once… see what the Food Bank is doing — how they help others — and then decide.”
We are so grateful for Joaquin and all our volunteers who help us build a stronger, healthier Kansas!