The holiday season in Bucks County has always been synonymous with community and love. As the days grow colder, the hearts of our neighbors seem to grow warmer with compassion as we all do our part to make the holiday season a joyful time. As someone who has always been submersed in volunteering and charity, I was excited to share that spirit with Maxava, a company in Doylestown that I’ve recently joined.
My colleagues and I were lucky enough to witness what our community is capable of during our trip to the Bucks County Housing Group’s Doylestown Food Pantry. Growing up, my parents would take me to Christ Home Orphanage in Warminster to give out presents during Christmas Eve. Those visits are one of my favorite memories of the holidays as a child. So, after a quick discussion with my boss and colleagues, they were open and eager to spread some holiday cheer.
After winding through some connections, I reached the amazing staff at United Way of Bucks County. Every person I corresponded with was lovelier than the next. I gave them parameters of what we were looking to do and within days we were set up to work at the Doylestown Food Pantry. I cannot even begin to adequately describe the professionalism, kindness, and speedy responses I experienced from each person I was in contact with. I was truly impressed!
Upon our arrival at the pantry, Maddie Burgess, the coordinator, was extremely helpful in showing us around and making introductions to the other volunteers. We were immediately immersed, as there was much to do with limited hands and limited time. Shelves were stocked, bags were unloaded, and food was quickly organized.
It was great working together to fill bags of food for families for holiday dinners by creating a makeshift assembly line. It was in that moment I saw how much goes into the coordination of the food bank and how reliant on the community it truly is.
Overall, our time spent at the Food Pantry was everything we imagined it to be. The kindness exuded by every person we encountered has definitely left a lasting impression on us here at Maxava. We will definitely be back!
The Bucks County Housing Group’s Doylestown Food Pantry is always in need of volunteers. No time is too short to help out – we just came on our lunch break! If you want to volunteer or donate please contact Maddie Burgess at 215-345-4311 ext. 101.
About the Contributor: Mariah Hartman is the U.S. Marketing Coordinator for Maxava located in Doylestown. Maxava (Maximum Availability Ltd) is a worldwide provider of innovative High Availability and Disaster Recovery software solutions for the IBM i platform.