Centre Hall woman is 'Angel' in disguise

By Gail Franklin

Editor’s note:“Helping Neighbors” features an exceptional volunteer in Centre County each Monday. To nominate someone for a future story, e-mail cdtnews cdtnewstips@centredaily.com.

CDT/Christopher Weddle

Judy Yates poses for a photo at the Calvary Baptist Church in State College on Tuesday, September 22, 2009. CDT/Christopher Weddle

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When most of us were sleeping on a Saturday morning a few weeks ago, Judy Yates awoke to a 4:30 a.m. breakfast in her Centre Hall home, and prayed that a tractor trailer from Georgia carrying enough food to feed a small army would arrive on time in State College.

The monthly delivery by Angel Food Ministries, a national nonpr o f i t that seeks to provide low-cost, high-quality food for families and individuals, pulled into the parking lot at Assembly of God church on a home football game morning.

That didn’t distract volunteers from 11 churches across central Pennsylvania, from Bellefonte to Tyrone, who gathered to divide more than 700 food orders in an atmosphere described by Yates as “controlled chaos.”

The food was driven back to each church to be distributed to those who placed orders, and who came carrying laundry baskets and boxes to cart their goods home.

Yates learned about the Christian food ministry that provides $65 worth of groceries for $30 when she volunteered to help on a distribution day in Howard.

She introduced the idea to her pastor at Calvary Baptist Church of State College, and in March 2008 asked attendees to buy a box for themselves so they could taste the quality before recommending it to others or buying a box for a person in need.

“I know there’s a lot of people out there struggling. A lot of people will see this and they’ll say, ‘That’s for people that are just scraping by,’ ” Yates said. “But it may be a middle class family living paycheck to paycheck ... It’s a good deal for everybody.”

Order forms don’t request any income or household information.

Yates, who does not work, considers her role as an Angel Food volunteer her newest career.

“It is my job,” she reflected. “It doesn’t matter that I’m a volunteer.”

Beyond taking orders and organizing volunteers on distribution day each month, Yates speaks about the program at nonprofit organizations and prints out fliers, which she puts on tables in gas stations, laundromats and apartment buildings.

“It’s wonderful what she can do because she’s reaching people in need,” said Barbara Weaver, the Angel Food coordinator at Assembly of God. “She really goes above and beyond.”

Yates also asks people attending her church to buy a “blessing box” for a family that can’t afford the $30 cost.

The boxes are given to individuals referred to Yates through local human service agencies, such as Park Forest Day Nursery, Big Brothers Big Sisters and two apartment buildings for seniors.

“Last December is when it really hit me, because we got more blessing boxes and one (referral) really got to me,” she said. “The woman told me she just had a few things left in the cupboard and she didn’t know how she was going to feed her kids the rest of the month.”

Order forms for October are due on Oct. 12 and the food will be distributed on Oct. 17. A special Thanksgiving box that includes a 7-pound Perdue Roaster, a two and a half-pound boneless ham, and all the fixings cost $36, and must be ordered by Oct. 28.

For more information, visit www.angelfoodministries.com or call Calvary at 238-0822, ext. 38.