After undergoing hip replacement surgery two years ago, Ron Pate laid in his bed and looked over at his wife, and his heart swelled with gratitude. “I knew if the Lord hadn’t blessed me with a wonderful wife, I’d be there by myself (for the entire rehabilitation process),” Pate said. “I got back to the health club, I started walking, trying to get back right and I told my wife, ‘You know what? I have to give back in some way.’”
That yearning to help others brought him to the Matthew 25:35 Food Pantry of the St. Charles United Methodist Church in Destrehan, where food pantry director Mary Ann Schindler cites Pate as one of its most giving and kind-hearted volunteers.
“Just that chance to help people,” Pate said. “You know, you wouldn’t believe how many people right around you are in need of some help. You can’t look at someone and know what’s going on in their house. But these people need help.”
Pate volunteers with the pantry each Wednesday, doing a variety of jobs but most importantly helping to ensure that many, many people don’t go hungry each week.
“I do a little bit of everything, unless it involves the computer,” Pate quipped, noting he’s the opposite of tech-savvy. “I don’t think I’d be too much of a benefit there.”
In truth, the spark in Pate’s mind that led him to find this volunteering effort started when his former home St. John Parish flooded in the aftermath of Hurricane Isaac.
“People went under,” Pate said. “I didn’t know anything about it, but I just jumped up and put my clothes on and started volunteering. My wife couldn’t find me. She turned on the TV and spotted me handing out packages of food, stuff like that, at Ascension of our Lord (school) in LaPlace. That kind of got me going, and that opened my eyes a little to where people are in need of help. I just try to make myself available. If I’m available, I’ll be there. ”
He wasn’t sure where he’d volunteer before he joined the food pantry, but after a few frustrating weeks of not finding the right fit, a reverend pointed him in the right direction.
“He told me people from the food pantry always came to his church looking for volunteers. They needed some help,” Pate said. “It all kind of worked out.”
Sometimes, he sees people he knows seeking help at the pantry, something that helps reinforce in his heart he’s doing the right thing.
Other times, the rewards come within the smile of a child.
“I’ll give the children ice cream,” he said. “They all know me. ‘Oh, Mr. Ron, you have something good for us?’ ‘I’m gonna find something!’
“I guess in my heart, I just like giving back and helping people.”
And one of his initial inspirations continues to inspire, in various ways.
“My wife won’t let me miss a Wednesday,” Pate said with a chuckle. “She’ll say, ‘they need you.’”
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