A young girl sits at her window, looking out at the dark but warm night sky. The stars glitter softly, as if the magical light they admit represents the dreams from people everywhere scattered around the Earth. With strong conviction, the little girl clasps her hands together, squeezes her eyes as tight as she can, and makes a wish on one of those stars that she can only hope will come true. Hope is a feeling of expectation or desire for something to happen. But the partnership between a small private Christian school in Redmond, Washington and a local food bank are trying to change that definition. They want to transform hope from a thought into action. In this article, we will explore The Bear Creek School, one built around wisdom, compassion, and courage; and Hopelink, an organization designed around self-sufficiency and no poverty for any member of the community. With both organizations located in the Seattle area, their mission to lift others up is more difficult than it seems.
Bear Creek is a fortunate school. Between rigorous academics, small classes, and friendly staff, it’s easy to say that Bear Creek is one of the most prestigious schools in Washington state. Because of all the love and grace they have been shown through their community, it’s their mission to give back to the community in which they live in. Started all from a trailer in 1988, this establishment has now grown into three buildings with eight hundred forty dedicated learners. In these last thirty-one years that they have been open, fifteen years have featured the food drive. So why the food drive? “’It’s a wonderful opportunity to expose our kids to helping others,’” says Neal Petit, the Middle School Dean of Students, who runs the drive for the Middle Schoolers. “There is meaning to putting things you are imagining into real life,”. He then continues on to talk about compassion in action, a frequently used phrase at Bear Creek. Adds the head of the food drive at the school, Lucy Graham, “It’s something we do because it’s the right thing to do--to give back.” She describes the food drive as a school-wide effort in which they get to show love to their neighbors, neighbors that might be less fortunate. It’s also about sacrificing your own time for the greater good and giving back. What do they hope their kids will learn from the food drive? To remember the people who usually aren’t first in line and to give back to the community that supports them.
“Our mission is to promote self-sufficiency; our vision is a community free of poverty,” says Hopelink’s Nancy Salarpi, their Community Engagement Development Specialist. Hopelink was founded almost fifty years ago with a dream that they could help others. Now, with over sixty-three thousand clients, Hopelink has expanded across five centers, including the food banks. But Hopelink doesn’t just help with food. Offering assistance with housing, energy, education, transportation, emergency funding, and planning for the future, they assist any struggling member of the Seattle area with all their needs. While their biggest demand is in the transportation field, Salarpi says, “It’s hard to think about anything else besides food when you don’t have it.” And people certainly use the food. In 2018, over two million meals were provided for almost fourteen thousand people. It takes large and successful food drives and many different fresh produce programs to keep up with the high demand. To apply for a food service, all a client is required to do is self-declare income and show identification. They then sign up for a time slot and come in every two weeks to pick out food for them and their families. Hopelink also focuses a lot on the atmosphere of the food bank. Many people who come to them are scared, ashamed, and vulnerable. “Everything is thought out,” says Salarpi. She goes on to talk about little but crucial details, such as their decision to use round tables versus square ones, so a person could sit right next to someone as opposed to directly across from them. Volunteers and employees both have a key role in running the food bank. Employees are also encouraged to do work in and around the food bank, such as volunteer in a specific time slot, help pick produce on a partner’s farm to go to the food bank, or share a conversation with a client, letting them know that they are safe and welcomed. When asked what three words she would use to describe Hopelink, Salarpi took time to consider her answer. “Community, welcoming, steadfast,” she replied. “We’re big, and we’re here when you need us.”
From late October to early November, the halls of Bear Creek are lined with almost every non-perishable food imaginable. Excitement surrounds the students as they carefully maneuver around the stacks of cans that often topple over and fall. Only given a small blue crate to put their items in each day, the students’ donation usually completely fills it up. Not only donating food to Hopelink, students of Bear Creek also give members of the community their love and support. And while there are good intentions behind the food drive, there also is a bit of competition. Middle schoolers compete for a pizza party and, most importantly, bragging rights. A single person brings in anywhere from five to two hundred-fifty cans, and almost everyone participates. The end goal? To bring in as much as possible—and to have fun while doing it.
When this massive donation arrives, the Hopelink workers are often overwhelmed. However, in this case, having too much is never a bad thing. With the support that they receive from their volunteers, Hopelink sorts the food into specific categories, making sure everything goes into its proper place. In the actual food bank, the layout is very much like a grocery store. Even though most donations are non-perishable, the bank is stocked with fresh fruit, vegetables, and meats from their partnerships with grocery stores and local farms. People mill about, choosing their items and chatting with volunteers, who are the same people that they see every two weeks. There is a sense of community, love, and encouragement in the way they talk, and it seems as though both parties enjoy being together. Hopelink cares about the financial state of their community, but even more so, they care about the people in it.
When these two incredible organizations come together, they embrace the needs of their community. In 2018, Bear Creek donated fifteen tons of food to Hopelink through its annual food drive, according to Graham. Why does Bear Creek choose to donate to Hopelink? “Because they serve our immediate community,” says Graham. How does Hopelink feel about Bear Creek? “We have come to rely on Bear Creek and their donation,” says Salarpi. “They have been so incredibly generous.” Salarpi goes on to say that the selection of food in the fall starts to get slimmer, and that they really count on donations like Bear Creek’s to make it through the holiday season. They are both proud to support a dream, that through their partnership, can help come true: the dream of no one being hungry.
Salarpi recalled her favorite story from working at Hopelink. It was delivering food to a preschool. All of the kids were crowding around the delivery van, squeezing between each other to see what treasures the truck held. “They were so excited,” Salarpi says, her expression warm with the memory. Because of donations like Bear Creek’s, and the unconditional help and understanding of Hopelink, the community of Seattle is being helped in ways that are much needed. Through their teamwork, Bear Creek and Hopelink are making a lasting impact that they hope will continue to grow. Will these two rewrite their community’s definition of hope? It is only possible if they continue to turn their mission from thoughts to action.