I moved to Colombia Heights after living in Latin America for the past 4 years. Many who live in the DC area know it’s difficult to get that feeling of community. I was looking for a solution and delivering food to elderly in need with We Are Family seemed like a perfect way to meet my neighbors. 

At 10am a group of 30 plus volunteers gathered together to unload a van full of grocery bags, receive a list of names and addresses, load up a shopping cart, and deliver! (Kinda)

In between the loading and the delivery of bags, Mark, the Co-Director of We are Family had all the volunteers introduce themselves, say where they were from, where they wanted to go, and where they had served if they were returned Peace Corps volunteers.

My DC mentality kicked in and I thought, “Seriously??? This is going to take forever!”

But then I realized, this is it, this is what its about -- community.  

This set the stage for the 26 or so doors our grocery delivery team would be knocking on during the next couple hours. Some of my neighbors where not home, others only opened the door a crack, while a few invited us is in and even offered candy, showed family photos and told us about the history of the neighborhood. It was a beautiful day, and I’m so glad to be serving in my home country. 

This blog post was written by RPCV/W Member Krystal Atha, who served in El Salvador from 2010 to 2012. The project was organized by RPCV/W Community Service Director Allison Nye O'Donnell, Honduras 07 - 09. If you would like to author content, you are welcomed to pitch your idea to [email protected].