Years with Self Help: 10

Beverly has been our longest-serving intake volunteer, with ten years of experience. She started during Ellen Bond’s time as Director and has continued through three different leaders.

Nearly every Monday morning throughout the year, our small team at Self Help is fortunate to rely on Beverly to return client calls and complete client applications. It’s a challenging task, but she approaches it with a compassionate heart and an empathetic ear.

“I feel I have so much— a comfortable home, plenty of nutritious food, and more clothes than I need. I realize many in New Mexico lack these basics. This volunteer work has been eye-opening,”

Beverly shares.

Her biggest challenge is the limited funds and the high demand from people needing more than we can provide. That’s why Self Help exchanges referrals with other organizations. However, she says,

“It is rewarding when we feel someone will get the help they need and this will make a difference in their life.”

When asked what she want others to understand about Self Help, she emphasizes that while we can address urgent needs, we cannot serve as a consistent monthly support. “Our goal is to get people out of a crisis with the hope that they can become self-sufficient,” states Bev. She goes on to say,

“I see a troubling trend with federal policies affecting SNAP, Medicaid and other agencies that are designed to help people in poverty…we need good-paying jobs for people who can work so that they don’t have to rely on aid.”

Bev’s dedication to helping others stands out; she consistently goes above and beyond to help community members in need.

For example, Ron initially reached out to us in November. He lives in Section 8 housing and needed his apartment door repaired, but his landlord refused to fix it. After weeks of communication involving estimates, reviewing quotes, verifying contractors, and sending referrals, we found out that his door was fixed, but we weren’t sure how it happened.

Bev, who managed the initial intake with Ron, independently took steps to fix the problem. She contacted a relative who used to be a vet and had connections with the American Legion. This relative gathered some Legion members, and after purchasing a new door, they dedicated a Saturday to installing the door and hardware.

Her caring spirit is a blessing to our organization and the community members who seek our assistance!