No greater joy than dancing with a chopping board

It was 4:15 early Monday morning of January 26, 2015, I said to my wife who was still in bed: I’ll go with Father Alex Vergara to town. I’ll be home by 10:00 am.”, then left the house.

Father Alex and I had agreed yesterday during our regular monthly meeting of the Oahu Filipino Community Council [OFCC] to go to one of the churches in town to try and explore a possible expansion and to connect our ongoing OFCC Special Projects as prescribed by the UFCH Resolution 2010-001.

Father Alex is the OFCC president who is also involved in [I am beginning to learn now who he is the longer we work together] in many community outreach projects being a retired pastor; I am an OFCC past president [1982] now a vice chairman of the OFCC Council of Past Presidents [COPP]. I’ve been doing this feeding the homeless, the elderly, the nonparents children many years back since my arrival in July 1971 with the Lions Club, the Waipahu Business Association, our St. Paul’s Church Honolulu, the DWCLCAAH, others. I was certified as a Layman Ministry by the Member Mission Network, Inc.  [New York based] as I attended seminars and stewardship training in this type of outreach in Santa Barbara California as provided by the Episcopal Asia Ministry and Church Development with the coordination of  Rev. Wayne Schwab with the recommendation of Rev. Dr. Fred Vergara  and Rev. Canon Randolph VN Albano.

Taking the bus is a regular thing I do whenever I go out. Since I got this benefit of a “Senior Bus Pass”, most of the time I take advantage of the public utility transportation: the bus.

I missed the Route E Bus due to the traffic signal that prevented me to run and ride. Buses run according to set schedules. No park-and-wait for any passenger until the driver sees you through the side or back mirror that you are trying to catch it.

Fortunately, Bus 91 came in just a few minutes at around 4:45 am.

Bus 91 is much faster than the Route E and in about 5:20 am, I got off the bus at the corner of Bethel and King Streets. It took me 10 minutes to reach Harris United Methodist Church corner of Vineyard and Nuuanu streets.

I went around the building and no one was around.

I called Fr. Alex informing him that I am already in front of the gate.

I went to the parking lot and I saw an elderly woman who just parked her car and was getting out; I said good morning and introduced myself. I told the lady that I was invited by Fr. Vergara to come and volunteer here.

Inside the kitchen, I was told to take out four big cooking pots out from the kitchen cabinet and I was told to put it in the big four-burner stove.

I asked them to just show me a sample on what to do by actual demonstration, I am a fast learner, and then things followed in good hands.

There came the white chopping board on top of the stainless tables, the bucket of potato, the cabbage, the onion and the kitchen knife. 

Kimi showed me how to cut and how to shred. Then, that is fast and quick.

Fr.  Alex on the other side did most of the cooking, putting all the necessary ingredients to make the soup good and tasty. He did some strokes in stirring, mixing, and adding water.

I have learned that their senior volunteer as Kimi Shigemura, who worked here as a volunteer for more than 30 years.

Other women like Helen, Norma and other three ladies were so welcoming and friendly. Environment like this with the elderly is not new to me anymore. I worked with people of all ages; I told them: don’t pay attention to your age, don’t count it; what is more important is what is your activity/ies is/are and what contribution to your group or community count.

Fr. Richard is also a retired pastor. But we both agreed: no retirement is applicable to serve in His Name [the Lord].

I introduced myself as a volunteer, a member of St. Paul’s Church-Honolulu. A Bishop’s Warden [President] for about 17 years and with the church about 35 years. A volunteer, community organizer with the Mission Day Service and the UFCH/OFCC Feeding the Homeless, the Adopt a Highway/Park; Hawaii Food Bank, others.

One criticized me why I am doing this and not to find a paid part-time or full time job for my own table.

Giving and sharing time, talent and sometimes treasure out from the pocket is to make me feel better than receiving from a payroll. It is true, I need money as I am financially in need, but, the difference is the ‘divine’ giving and the receiving material things.

Closing prayer by Fr. Alex. Its 7 am—what a wonderful morning in one hour sharing the time to prepare meals for those ‘brothers and sisters” destitute and no shelter.  That early morning starts a good day of sharing my voluntary time, one of the “Three T’s” in stewardship and serving the Lord in this way.

Thanks God for letting us do this for our destitute brothers and sisters, sleeping along the street, with cardboard and very old and worn blankets or what not—for sharing is love; for giving is passion and compassion—let me do it again Lord, should You allow me once or many more times and in a million times… if you believe that is how do you want me to serve… for the community and in your name.

That is volunteerism as an act of giving time, talent and treasure, provide services without any expressed or implied promise of remuneration, but giving free time, with free will, for the benefit of others, Thanks God. You let me accomplish it again!

No greater joy to serve; and no other consolation and reward but your continued blessings to my family, friends and the community in providing us the 10-H: health, happiness, harmony, helping hands, humility, hope healing, and a ‘house’ as I call it home.

That home as an abode to dwell with my family: to pray, to eat food in our table, to laugh, to sing, to converse and communicate, to read and to learn every day that make us stronger individual and to spend our life as a temporary basis—that there is a permanent place to rest eternally. “Ta idiay balay ni Ama adu ti pagyanan iti awan patinggana a biag.”