By Katie Patrick
Thanks be to God, another successful “Walk to End Hunger” event was held Sunday, Aug. 10, at Pius X High School in Lincoln. It was a beautiful 87 degrees that day—one of the coolest yet in the history of this particular summer evening event.
The friendly competition among parishes led by Knights of Columbus Councils and sponsored by Better Life Insurance had its fifth year of raising dollars and food for the Lincoln CSS Food Market.
Over the years, CSS clients have benefited from thousands of pounds of food—various items all specifically requested to help meet the needs of those we serve.
After the Pius X marching band played the national anthem, several brief speeches set the tone for the evening. In particular, following the weekend’s wind storms and power outages, Lt. Governor Joe Kelly highlighted the camaraderie of neighbors, noting that many people were given the chance to help one another with clearing debris, yard work, and keeping each other’s spirits up. Father Troy Schweiger, pastor of St. Patrick Parish in Lincoln, emphasized that we were not out here collecting food and walking for “them” but for “us,” because we are all one Body of Christ.
Both solid reminders that being present and getting to know one another on a personal level is paramount to our being fully human and living the Gospel. How else are we to work toward heaven and help others experience the love of Jesus if we do not encounter one another?
Recently, a CSS team member helped a client shop in our food market. This particular client was a regular at our agency, a former refugee from Afghanistan, and spoke very little English. One afternoon, he saw we had frozen fish as an option. He picked it up and said something to her that sounded like “mahi mahi” — this continued each month when he visited our food market.
Initially, our team member thought he was requesting the particular type of fish, and one that we didn’t have. Until one day it clicked—it wasn’t a type of fish he wanted, but he was teaching our team member the word for “fish” in Farsi. Once this connection was made and she understood his intentions, his eyes lit up. His shopping experience that afternoon continued with joy as he pointed out various other items on the shelves saying the name of each item in Farsi, with our team member repeating it after him. She followed up each item by saying the English name of the item with him repeating it back to her. The client was beaming the entire time! What a beautiful, unexpected encounter.
Ultimately, these are the kinds of connections and encounters that truly matter. It’s about letting go of the ‘we’ and ‘them,’ and remembering there is only ‘us’—one Body of Christ.
Together, with Mike Hosek, the event organizer with Better Life Insurance, Catholic Social Services celebrates the incredible sponsor support that made the Walk to End Hunger 2025: Wrap-up Walk and Celebration a success. Catholic Social Services is deeply grateful to all sponsors and donors for their commitment to addressing hunger and food insecurity in our community.
