Britt Fairchild / Staff Writer | Posted: Saturday, January 15, 2005 12:00 am
Meeting Mary Jane Humphrey is like finding light amid darkness.
In a time and place where wealth and status and the attainment of "things" often determine a person/s worth in society, Mary Jane possesses something more valuable 77 humility.
Whether she/s at St. Louis de Montfort Church, volunteering at the Catholic Charities food pantry or working at Marian Residence, the retired teacher spends much of her time helping others.
And not so she/ll be acknowledged or commended for her efforts, but because it/s clear she can/t imagine not trying to better the lives of her fellow humans in whatever ways she can.
"(I/m) serving God through serving his people," said Mary Jane, whose inclination for volunteer work began while she was in high school in Southern California.
Only those truly dedicated to others would spend the bulk of their day on their feet with few breaks and without pay lifting and sorting through large boxes of food to give to strangers.
These are just some of Mary Jane/s daily tasks as manager of the Catholic Charities food pantry, a position she/s held since 1997.
While donations 77 of both money and food 77 from the community, particularly schools, clubs and organizations and other denominations of churches help, much of the pantry/s daily food comes from the local food bank.
Each weekday, Mary Jane arrives at the food bank at 8 a.m. to pick up 10 banana boxes full of bread, tortillas, milk, eggs, cottage cheese, yogurt, juice, produce and other food items.
She also purchases, with donations to the charity, what she calls "salvage boxes" of dented cereal boxes and cans of food from the food bank.
Then she returns to the pantry and unloads the food.
Mary Jane then separates the large quantities into smaller portions that can be given to Catholic Charities clients as part of the nonprofit/s emergency food program.
At Catholic Charities, clients receive help in a number of ways, from assistance with utility bills and rent, to coupons for free bus transportation, to job training skills.
Once in a while, Mary Jane noted, the nonprofit will help with prescriptions.
The organization/s caseworker works with clients to help them find employment and a steady source of income, so they no longer need Catholic Charities services.
The tasks of loading, unloading and separating food typically monopolize the entire morning.
After lunch from about 12 to 1 p.m., Mary Jane returns to the pantry to begin filling clients/ food orders, a steady process that keeps her busy until 4 p.m. or later most days.
"There/s a lot to feeding people," she said, showing that day/s stack of food orders written out, and given to her, by the caseworker.
While every client receives certain staples, such as rice and beans, the size of the family, the ages of those in the family, and the individual dietary needs of the family members or of an individual will determine the amount of food given, and sometimes the type of food.
For example, a family with young children might take the highest priority to receive peanut butter.
"I have three degrees of need," Mary Jane said, referring to where the level of need can be found on the food order.
Someone with a "regular" need, she explained, means the client, or someone in the family, is currently working.
"Needy" lets Mary Jane know that the client or no one in the family, is working presently, but will begin to work soon.
"Very needy" means there is no job in sight for anyone in the family.
The majority of clients served by the emergency food program are what Mary Jane refers to as "working poor" 77 those who have jobs and stable residences, but can/t afford to buy enough food to feed themselves or their families.
Homeless people, those who do not have a home, or those living in their vehicles or in motels, comprise a much smaller percentage of those served, Mary Jane noted.
Since much of those in this population do not have access to a refrigerator, oven or stove, the food Mary Jane gives them doesn/t require cooking, such as Top Ramen or instant mashed potatoes, food that requires only hot water.
Besides the daily emergency food program, once a month clients can also come to the charity to receive food as part of the USDA Government Food Commodity Program.
Before she begins her volunteer work each morning, Mary Jane attends 6:30 a.m. Mass.
"I couldn/t do the day without it," she said, noting the enrichment it provides her.
Faith has always played a main role in Mary Jane/s life.
After high school, she attended Mt. St. Mary/s College in Los Angeles, where she earned her teaching degree in elementary education.
During that time she was also becoming a Sister in the order of Saint Joseph of Carondelet.
Mary Jane was happy to be serving God in this role and did so for 20 years.
Then life threw her a nightmarish curveball.
She became seriously ill which led to a leave of absence from religious life, including teaching, according to her doctor/s recommendation.
She was 37.
"That/s all I knew how to do," she said of teaching and her religious studies.
It seemed at that point in her life, every door was closed to her.
"When God closes a door, he opens a window," she said.
Mary Jane then moved to Santa Barbara, where her family lived and decided if she was no longer able to teach, she would help people as a nurse/s aide.
While she was in Santa Barbara, Mary Jane met Joseph Humphrey, her future husband.
At the time, Joseph worked as a manufacturing engineer for the research and development department for Hughes Aircraft (now called Santa Barbara Research) in Santa Barbara.
"With much discernment and spiritual direction and prayer, God led me to my future husband," she said. "He/s a man of much wisdom and faith."
Mary Jane credited Joseph, who is on the board of directors for Catholic Charities, as being instrumental in building up the pantry as it functions today.
When he took over the Catholic Charities food pantry 12 years ago, she said, there were three cans of food on the shelves and a gunnysack of pinto beans in the corner.
"What it is today is what he/s made it," Mary Jane said, adding that she took over several of the tasks at the pantry when Joseph was called in as an engineering consultant to fill an emergency need in Santa Barbara.
"We don/t just toss a can into a bag," Joseph said, noting there is much more compassion and understanding to their work.
Not to mention the amount of food that is given to those in need.
"We do 17 tons of food out of this room (the pantry) per month," he said.
Joseph said it has been neat that he and his wife have been able to work together in the pantry for several of the 25 years they/ve been married.
"It/s been done with a lot of joy and fun and camaraderie," he said. "We inspire each other."
While Mary Jane naturally seems one to not seek the spotlight, it shone upon her and her work recently when she was named the Community Health Network/s Volunteer of the Year at a luncheon earlier this month at Marian Medical Center.
"My husband did not tell me (about the award). He said /We/re going to a luncheon, don/t make any plans/," she said, admitting how surprised she was when she realized she was being given an award.
"I felt very honored because it was given by other organizations that serve the community," she said, however noting that there are many others in the community who deserved the award as well.
Mary Jane also noted that as she received the award, she thought of when Mother Theresa won the Nobel Prize.
She also thought of the people she serves on a daily basis, like the woman who came to the pantry the evening before Thanksgiving. The woman was low on funds and wasn/t able to buy the several-days-worth of food she needed to cook for her guests. Besides the turkey and fixings, Mary Jane was able to give the woman a large bucket of potato salad that someone else had just donated that morning.
"This is what gives me goose pimples," she said. "To me, that/s the reward."
* Staff writer Britt Fairchild can be reached at 739-2220 or by e-mail at bfairchild@pulitzer.net.
Dec. 30, 2004