Student Reflection: Serving the evening meal at the Siena Francis House

    Last Monday, two Operation Others core team members, Mr. Kinney, and I, went to the Siena Francis House to serve dinner. It was my first time serving there. The first thing that I noticed was how friendly everyone was. The people sitting outside – who were obviously the ones who would be receiving my services that night – all said “hello,” and a man leaving held the door for me while I walked in. Since everything was new to me I had to ask the people at the front desk where I was needed. They all smiled at me (5 smiling faces was very reassuring) and one of them walked me back to the kitchen where I my escort introduced me to all of the kitchen staff. I was a little bit (ok maybe a lot) early, so to begin with there was not much to do. I put some hamburger buns into a container and then one of the men working in the kitchen suggested, “hey lets do it like on Sundays,” and they sent me out to put bananas on each place setting. At this point other members of my group started to show up and I began to feel more at home. I relaxed a little and began to notice more of what was going on around me.
     People began to line up outside the eating area, young and old, men and women, each waiting patiently and politely for the meal to begin. When one of the workers gave the signal, everyone came and sat down, filling nearly every seat. Probably the most touching part of the night was when they asked for a volunteer to lead the prayer before the meal. Before each group ate its meal, the staff would ask for a volunteer to lead the prayer. Before each of the four meal-times, one person in the group got up and led a prayer. During their prayer they managed to name a few things they were thankful for – that put some things into perspective for me. During and after each meal I witnessed little things that showed me how heroic these people were – like the father who went out to the common area an played with his children after the meal, or the table in the last group who saved a place for their friend who was running late so that he would not be forgotten, or every mother who passed the tray of food to their children before looking for one for themselves. In serving at the Siena Francis house I was able to interact with a group of people who I don’t normally have a chance to meet. Not only was I able to observe and learn from them, but I was also able to serve them and hopefully brighten their day a little bit.

The Siena Francis House is Nebraska's largest homeless shelter. It has been serving men, women, and children for 35 years.
The writer, Claire, is a Senior Operation Others Core Member.