By Marcelyn Joseph
For the past several years, Morristown Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Incorporated has partnered with the Spring Street Community Development Corporation’s Table of Hope to support its efforts to fight food insecurity in the Morris County area. Known as a place “where hope starts, and the community gathers to share,” Table of Hope serves free meals to anyone in need.
“Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, members of Morristown Alumnae helped Table of Hope serve dinners in person,” said Chapter President Marian Sykes Johnson. “With restrictions on indoor gatherings and the need for social distancing, however, we had to adjust our engagement for the safety of our chapter members.”
As a substitute for their in-person volunteerism, many Morristown Alumnae members purchased items on Amazon.com from Table of Hope’s wish list. The donations were used to stock Table of Hope’s stationary and mobile food pantries, which serve more than 1,500 families per week.
“When I saw the request for Table of Hope donations, I went to the organization’s Amazon wish list,” explained Morristown Alumnae member Roberta Moseley. Moseley rededicated herself to the work of the Sorority in June 2020 after 12 years of inactivity, just when the pandemic's economic effects were disrupting many people's lives. “I felt the best way for me to help the most people was for me to help Table of Hope provide food distribution services to their ever-expanding clientele.” Her wish list contributions included hundreds of takeout food containers and disposable cutlery along with 2,000 T-shirt carryout bags. She also ordered cases of black and clear plastic 55-60-gallon trash bags for cleanup because the Amazon wish list designated them as urgent items.
“God provides us a refuge from the storms of life, and sometimes we are the refuge God provides for others,” Moseley shared, who always has made charitable donations when her retirement income and savings have allowed.
“The Amazon wish list is an ongoing endeavor. So, we invite others to participate and make a purchase,“ urged Cindy Flowers, chair of the community outreach component of Morristown Alumnae’s Program Planning and Development Committee.
Continually seeking to find ways to help further Table of Hope’s mission, Flowers added that in November, chapter members also donated ingredients needed to prepare Thanksgiving dinners for people who otherwise would have gone without.
For its service to Table of Hope, Morristown Alumnae received a 2020 Table of Hope Volunteer Award.