Story and photos by: Chris Faber ’20

Hidden in an alleyway behind the unassuming church parking lot of St Joseph’s parish, a large operation took place. The goal? To feed a community of over a 1000 people. Cascading piles of cans, tortillas, pasta, and various food items were sorted by a group of over forty students, faculty, and volunteer parents. 

When entering the room, the first thing you would notice is a flurry of activity with bodies flying from table to box and back. Carrying cans of corn, beef, alphabet soup, and fruit, each can was meticulously placed in boxes alongside a large Christmas ham, tortillas and a two pound bag of flour. Each box sat in a row one after the other and two by two, they were packed, sealed, and stacked to be given out to the community.
When the church bells rang out, an entire community spilled onto the sidewalk where vendors sold cotton candy and Mexican candy. Business was good as a sea of church goers flooded the street. A sign on a door read “Merry Christmas, come get a free Christmas food box in the gym!”

An assembly line of volunteers streamed the boxes out the door into the hands of families. A few translators stood by to translate Spanish to English, while several resourceful mothers stacked boxes on their baby strollers.
Since the mid-70’s, Regis Jesuit High School has been volunteering at St. Joseph’s Parish off of 6th and Galapagos in Denver. Since then, many donations have been made to support the cause. The meals go to families who may otherwise not have a decent meal to eat on Christmas.

This year 2RW classes collected a total number of more than 2000 cans. Each can went to a person in the community that needed it, like Carlitos from San Luis, Mexico.

“It really helps us all out, I love to cook for my family but sometimes I don’t the time because I am working to buy food for them,” Carlitos said.

The largely immigrant community is made up of families who at  times can’t speak very much English. One man named Pedro and his daughter named Paola were grateful for the gift.
“We love the community around here, it feels great to have so many people around me who can support me,” Pedro said.