Religion

Lucy Agee, 41, stood on the sidelines, clutching a number and watching a long line of patient people pass by. It was her first time at the morning fruit and vegetable distribution at the People Attempting To Help building and she wondered when her time would come.

“I got here at 8:30 this morning because I heard it could get like this,” she said surveying the situation with attentive eyes. “There sure are a lot of people here.”

Exactly 179 of them showed up at the PATH Produce Day, said Ron Kasek, a volunteer who was keeping the sign-in sheet up-to-date. Kasek said some people come as early as 6 a.m. to get a number and then return just before 10 a.m. when the produce is off-loaded from the East Texas Food Bank truck. The food is free if someone comes and gets it, so the faith-based organization goes every Wednesday to see what’s available. Today there are big bags of huge onions, watermelons, bags of iceberg lettuce and Styrofoam trays of chopped tomatoes sealed in cellophane. People line the fence, alley, lawns and parking lot, waiting. Streets around the PATH building are full of parked cars.

The age, gender and racial mix appears to be evenly distributed along white, black and Hispanic lines, though more women not involved in day jobs seem to be present. PATH volunteers like Anthony Matlock, 25, help the women and people with obvious physical hindrances to carry the food to their cars. Anyone can come to Produce Day, said Kasek.

He came a few years ago to get some food and came back to help out.

“My wife and I were at a point where we needed some help, so we came down,” he said. “Things weren’t going too well.”

When he saw PATH at work, he said he knew he had to help.

“When things got better for me, I came back and volunteered,” he said. “I’ve been here two years.”

That’s not uncommon, said Christina Fulsom, executive director of PATH.

“Many, many of our volunteers are those that PATH helped at one time or another in a time of crisis. That’s why we exist, to help people get stable and to get on with their lives. That’s the vast majority of the type of people we see.”

The atmosphere is calm, not rushed or impatient, even though some have waited for two hours or more. The first-timers, like Dexter Spencer, 42, said he was grateful for the help because he was “living minute by minute.” His job as a roofer suddenly came to unexpected end recently, he said, when his employer left town without notice. Unable to make his rent that month, Spencer moved into a $35 a day motel and had been living there for about two weeks. Now he was unable to pay the motel.

“I don’t know what I’m going to do,” he said, pulling out a motel receipt from his pocket. “I owe two days and then today’s money. I don’t know if the owner’s going to keep my clothes or what.”

Looking over the line going by, his demeanor appeared to be resignation tinged with hopeful expectation.

“It’s all in the Lord’s hands,” he said and then after a moment, lowered his head. “It’s in his hands.”

Hands hand out bags of lettuce onions and tomatoes, Hands receive them in boxes and more hands take the food out to cars. It never used to be so crowded on Produce Day, said Beverly Andrews, a PATH staff worker who oversees the food pantry and its programs. The economy is squeezing people like never before, she said.

“Participation has doubled since I started working Produce Day a few years ago, and it’s really jumped this year,” she said. Wearing shorts, a sun visor, a sleeveless blouse and carrying a clip board, Ms. Andrews looks up from her notes when a man raises his voice after being stopped from taking an entire box of iceberg lettuce. After volunteers tell him others need lettuce, too, he puts the box down and takes away a single bag. Ms. Andrews does not let the incident faze her.

“The few times we get difficult situations, it’s usually because people want to take more than their share. But that’s not too often. These are good people who want to live like good people.”

People like Wanda Barber, a “senior citizen” who comes to get food for two veterans.

“They’re both single and can’t get around because gas prices are so high,” she said. “I pick up food for myself and them, and it helps them out.”

One is a World War II veteran and the other is a Vietnam vet.

“They wouldn’t be doing so well without this,” she said.

Not doing too well without PATH is what Teresa and her 25-year-old daughter, Luc, said too.

“This is very important,” said Teresa. She spoke through an interpreter. “There is not enough money for food.” Teresa’s husband was injured on the job and was at home in bed, she said. She held her infant nephew on her hip in the hot sun. Her daughter, who speaks English, said, “We’ve been here a few times before, and it’s been a real help. It gets us through in a healthy way.”

The congenial atmosphere is briefly split when a man sees the press present.

“Hey, tell the mayor to get down here and see what’s happening,” he calls out. “Look at all these people. We need jobs.”

No one joins in with the man. If anything, eyes are lowered and the line quietly moves forward to receive food from people attempting to help them out of their current situations.

Matlock said he volunteered because “I just love to help people.”

That’s the atmosphere that prevails as volunteers and recipients alike say, “yes, ma’am,” “yes, sir,” “may I help you?” and “Thank you so much.”

“We’ll give out food until there is no more,” said Ms. Andrews. “And they’ll come as long as we have food to give out.”

FILING THROUGH: People pass through a line outside the PATH building on West Front Street to receive produce donated by the East Texas Food Bank. People Attempting To Help has distributed fresh fruits and vegetables every Wednesday to Tyler residents for the past five years.
(Photo By Tom Turner)