Chris Snedeker was looking for a way to serve the community when an email from Impact on Education dropped into his inbox. For Chris, serving his community is about engaging with people on a personal level and paying it forward. BVSD and Impact on Education have been ever-present entities in his life as his kids wound their way through the school system. The many challenges and great people—teachers, administrators and of course, their friends—on that path always impressed him, so it was easy to say yes to a request for help distributing food to BVSD student families.
Behind the scenes
After an online training, Chris was given a confidential list of eight BVSD student families who needed food deliveries. He showed up at Columbine Elementary School early the next Monday unsure of what to expect. The day prior he made a practice run to ensure all of the student’s homes were accessible.
At Columbine, Chris was greeted with cheerful smiles—yes, you can see twinkling eyes above those masks—helpful guidance and kind gestures. The BVSD personnel were busy pulling cartons of food off trucks, stuffing individual bags of food and organizing gallons of milk. Despite how busy they were, they took time to walk him through the procedure: delivering one and one-half gallons of milk and a full grocery bag to each student, each week.
“I encountered people who were energetic, conscientious and fun to work with.”
On the road making deliveries
Setting off to make the deliveries, Chris didn’t know what to expect at the other end. BVSD advised volunteers to make contact and be friendly, but maintain distance. What he found with each and every delivery was someone who came to the door, smiled at him and said thanks with an evident depth of gratitude. This was true of each of the five households (eight kids). After a couple of weeks, the deliveries were doubled to 16 kids, but the friendly welcome and gracious appreciation continued.
Chris continues to deliver food each Monday to make sure BVSD students have the nourishment they need to tackle their studies. He says he is struck by the consideration, gratitude and friendliness he encounters at every step of this journey.
Paying it forward
“I’m having fun and thankful for the opportunity to engage with members of our community that I rarely see,” Chris says. By giving in this way, Chris is seeing his own horizons expand. Helping the community he raised his family in is further strengthening his ties to Boulder, Impact on Education and BVSD.
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