Every Day Is A Miracle Volunteer Sandra Ortiz
June 15, 2015 – As we celebrate Puerto Rican pride this month, Food Bank For New York City shines the spotlight on Sandra Ortiz, a committed volunteer who has served her community for over a decade. Sandra has been volunteering at Every Day Is A Miracle, a Food Bank member charity in the Bronx, for more than 15 years and is looking forward to helping her neighbors for years to come.
“As a volunteer intake coordinator I get to work directly with clients, getting them registered and making referrals for SNAP [food stamps], Medicaid, housing and more,” says Sandra, a mom of two adult children. “It feels wonderful to offer a helping hand to another person because I’ve been there myself. I know what it’s like to be hungry and go through hard times.” With help she was able to rebuild her life and today she’s paying it forward by helping others who are struggling to do the same.
It all began with a simple question. “Every Day Is A Miracle is across the street from where I lived at that time,” Sandra recalls. “One day I saw a line of people waiting outside, so I asked a few of them if it was a food pantry. They said yes, so I joined the line to get food. That’s how I first met Maria.”
Maria Estrada, Every Day Is A Miracle’s founder and CEO, is thrilled to have volunteers like Sandra. “I can always count on her,” says Maria. Ask Sandra and she’ll tell you that her South Bronx community feels the same way about Maria. “The work her organization does is so important because of the level of need,” says Sandra. “In the 15 years that I’ve been volunteering here the need has grown every day. More and more people are coming to the pantry. I haven’t seen lines this long in my life.”
Although she loves being able to give back to her community, Sandra admits that some days are harder than others. “Sometimes when I hear clients’ stories, it makes me cry. I give them a hug and it makes them feel better. It’s a little thing, but it brings a smile to their faces. That’s my favorite thing about volunteering, seeing that smile on someone’s face. It’s all I need.”
Well, that and maybe a plate of Arroz con Gandules, a Puerto Rican dish of green pigeon peas and rice that Sandra pairs with pork shoulder—one of her specialties. When she’s not serving her neighbors at Every Day Is A Miracle, she’s serving them this and other dishes at neighborhood block parties. Cooking for people is just one more way Sandra makes sure they know how much she cares. “Food is so much about family,” she says. “It brings people together.”