When an undergraduate student arrives on campus for the first time, it is uncommon for them to consider places to volunteer. In most cases, the location of a college or university contributes to the decision made by the student and their family. These prospective students might look into the population size or the downtown area, yet the people who have long called the city home are typically not factored in.
I had the same mindset when choosing Beloit College as well. I came into my first year unaware of affairs occurring outside of the college’s influence. It took me until this semester to realize there is a relative disconnect with the students and the city of Beloit. My freshman year schedule ate away at my time and mental health, causing me to pass up on volunteering opportunities off campus. However, that all changed last semester after I signed up for Professor Jingjing Lou’s Ecology, Education, and Development seminar.
The class called for students to register a minimum of 20 service hours in addition to a final project with a self-selected organization in the greater Beloit area. Luckily for me, my fraternity brother Ashton Adams’27 presented me with a great opportunity to explore the city and make a lasting impact for the city. Although completing the adequate service hours is what prompted my volunteering participation, I am very happy it came before I deemed my schedule “too busy.”
That is when I started volunteering my time at Caritas during the fall. Caritas is a community resource center that provides services including a food pantry, diaper bank, community graden, and a birthday bags program. The organization has been a staple of the community since the 1970s. A collective of pastors including Reverend Ian Stirrat came together and established Caritas to address food scarcity. That legacy has been carried on to the present, continuously growing to the organization it is today at 2840 Prairie Ave.
What solidifies Caritas’s longevity is because its work has persisted generations. Executive director Larisa Chmielewski is the daughter of Reverend Stirrat, and she carries on the foundational work of her father. She has been advocating the mission that “everyone who walks through the door gets fed and has access to all other provided products.”
I logged a total of 12 hours over the two months doing a multitude of tasks that are a part of the well-oiled machine that Caritas is. The first two times I assisted in the food pantry, where people would come in for groceries depending on family size.
During these sessions, I was also able to utilize my Spanish skills. It came up the most in the pantry and the pickup grocery option communicating with those community members who do not use English as their first language. Although I may not be bilingual, I was able to properly communicate the services Caritas offered and make sure all families went home with the appropriate necessities.
For the other times I volunteered, the work was more behind the scenes but still made a lasting impact. It would usually be a mixture of stocking the grocery carts for pickups or sorting through donated items. These tasks allowed for more food to get distributed in the pantry and kept the day-to-day flow consistent and steady.
Many people probably wonder where all the food for Caritas is coming from. A lot of logistics go into receiving the larger quantities of food, especially when outside organizations get involved. For instance, The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) is a large provider for Caritas, bringing anywhere from 7,500 to 16,000 pounds of food per monthly delivery. The federal program is not paid for on behalf of Caritas, yet they do not decide what is brought in for each delivery.
Caritas also works closely with Second Harvest, an organization in Madison, to order and receive certain amounts of food. Chmielewski always tries to find ways to have access to milk and eggs, yet some of the other products can be ordered for free, bringing in more of an abundance for the pantry. Second Harvest also partners with grocery stores like Sam’s Club or Walmart, but items that come from that system function on a “taking it all principle,” which essentially means Caritas brings in items the specific store offers to them.
Outside of these two organizations, Chmielewski said the donations from the greater Beloit area are typically from local churches, food drives, and spontaneous donors. As of October of this year, the community has brought Caritas an estimated 480,000 pounds of food. What is outstanding about these donations is the value of price per pound, which is $1.97. The price per pound is just one of the examples Caritas can show to affirm their strong relationship with its donors and organizations looking to help feed the hungry.
I had a lot to take away from my volunteering experience and I am happy to say I will definitely be returning in 2026. All volunteers come from different walks of life, to which they foster a safe and welcoming environment for all who participate. Chmielewski said the best part of the work is “what it gives you in return. It’s a way to feel fulfilled and find purpose beyond self interests,” to which I could not agree more.
College students across the world should find ways to get involved within their institution’s city. The community has a lot to offer back, and it all starts with giving a little bit of your time.
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