the catholic community of st. francis of assisi
Food Truck For The Hungry
Mike Dawson, who is the Director of Finance for Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Raleigh, and his team do fantastic work. Catholic Charities operates food pantries throughout the Diocese to serve those in need, but the demand for assistance has outpaced available resources. As Mike says, “In the 2024 fiscal year, we served over 235,000 individuals at our six food pantries around the diocese. As we look to match the increasing demand for our services, we knew we needed to come up with an innovative way to help fund our food pantry programming.”
This need is the reason the idea of a food truck began to take root: a commercial food truck representing Catholic Charities and its work, which can also provide much-needed funds. “The Catholic Charities’ Savor Food Truck’ is a new venture for Catholic Charities,” says Mike. “ We have been distributing food to our neighbors in need at our food pantries for over 40 years, but the food truck is our first business venture where we will be selling food to the general public.” With the popularity of the food truck industry, tapping into this market was a great opportunity. “We are hopeful that the food truck will generate a profit when it is out and about in the community at festivals, food truck rodeos, parish and diocesan functions, and corporate events.
Volunteer Spotlight: Pam James
Pam James can weave, and not just a great story! Pam has been in Weaver’s Guilds, each with over 200 members, in three different states, Colorado, Texas, and North Carolina, and has been an avid weaver and mixed media artist for a long time. Every two years, there is a convention where she says, “Every well-known weaver attends and is probably teaching a class.” This past year, the convention was in Wichita, Kansas, where she entered a piece in the Mixed Media category and won 3rd Place!
How does this correlate to her work at St. Francis? She weaves her love of art with her leadership of the ‘Care for Creation’ ministry at St. Francis. “I’ve always been a bit of an ‘eco-freak,’” says Pam,” I grew up with the idea that you mustn’t waste. My sister-in-law is kind enough to call me resourceful, but I’m just cheap! I’ve always asked myself, ‘Why would I throw that away? I can use that.’” She exclusively uses ‘recycled yarn’ in weaving, embracing the ‘reuse’ principle of Care for Creation.
Ministry Spotlight: Cross Train
Jess Montrella, the Coordinator of Middle School Evangelization and Formation at St. Francis, is charged with the ‘Cross Train’ Program in Faith Formation. “As the Middle School Faith Formation Coordinator, in collaboration with Tim Hetzel, Director of Youth Ministry, I work to help our youth build an ever-deepening relationship with God and Jesus Christ, create fellowship within the Cross Train community, and foster connections with the Parish of St. Francis. We work towards these goals by offering Cross Train meetings on Sunday evenings during the school year in which we establish a strong sense of community through inclusivity, compassion, and a common desire to live out the principles of our Catholic faith within our time together and beyond. The Cross Train program is rooted in scripture, with the content and activities designed to be highly experiential so that youth can integrate meaning at a deeper level with the intentions of planting seeds from which spiritual growth occurs.”
