Buck and Helen Swahn are retiring from their role as regular volunteers at the Emmaus Soup Kitchen. “We hate to say we can no longer do it,” said Helen, but standing for so long has become physically difficult for the two. “We promise we will still visit!”

“You’ve certainly been a blessing to Emmaus,” replied Sister Mary Miller, director of Emmaus. “I’m very glad you’re making the right decisions for yourselves – and also not abandoning us completely!”

Emily is a longtime donor to Emmaus Ministries but more recently also become a regular volunteer at the Soup Kitchen, serving with a group of friends on the first Tuesday of each month. The interview is conducted by Emmaus staff member, Breanna Mekuly.

Breanna: Sister Mary told me that you first became involved in Emmaus Ministries when you and your good friend Kelley Glass raised $20,000 to start up the Kids Cafe. How did this fundraising come about?

“I try to remember all the names of the individuals who come through my line at the pantry,” says Debbie Shoup, who volunteers both at Emmaus’ pantry and soup kitchen. “I can’t tell you the warmth of the smile they get on their face when I remember their name without looking at their identification card.”

At the pantry, Debbie sits behind a desk checking guests in each Monday and Tuesday. She works with people from last names beginning with the letters A-G. There are about 300 active individuals in her group of guests.

“My hairdresser and friend of fifty years, Kathe Wilson, had often told me about how much she enjoys volunteering at the soup kitchen,” explained Mary Anne Geary. “So when she asked me to step in for a volunteer who was getting older and struggling to come in each week, I said yes.” That was three years ago. And after that first year of substituting, Mary Anne became a regular volunteer on the serving line at the kitchen.

Walking into Emmaus Soup Kitchen can be a life-changing experience – for the volunteers, that is, says Greg Baker.

Greg is director of campus ministry at Mercyhurst University, whose students and staffers have been volunteering at Emmaus for 25 years.

“So often we see that what students understand as service changes during the years,” says Greg, 39, who views service work and ministry as “wrapped together.” He met his wife, Jennifer, at Gannon University. After they graduated and married, they joined the Jesuit Volunteer Corps in Kansas. He worked at an alternative high school; Jennifer volunteered at an inner-city elementary school...

Carl Larese knows the value of mentors and the beauty of paying it forward, and both have influenced his support of Emmaus Ministries.

The owner of Larese Floral Design, 3857 Peach Street, Carl, 58, found his calling professionally at age 17 when he worked at the former Bachelor Button flower shop at West 10th and Cherry streets. He rode his bike there from his family’s home on West 21st Street.

“I started as driver, delivering flowers, cleaning up,” says Carl. But Bobby Wurst, owner of Bachelor Button, told Carl, “You’d be more valuable to me in the store than out in the truck,” he recalls...

When Betty Amatangelo was dismissed from her job at Mercyhurst University in a cost-cutting move in November 2014, the lost income hit her family's budget and also took an emotional toll.

But Betty and her husband, Tony, never considered reducing or dropping their gifts to Emmaus Ministries. They remain committed to tithing – giving back 10 percent of their income – because they know their donations make a difference. They also know what it's like to struggle with problems similar to those facing guests at Emmaus.

“We both fought addictions and alcoholism and are blessed with...

Last week I served at the Emmaus Soup Kitchen in Erie, PA. The next day, Sr. Mary who runs the kitchen asked me how my experience was. I hesitated before telling her the truth; I didn’t like it and actually, I don’t like soup kitchens in general.

All I did was serve fruit on the line this time. In the midst of asking guests if they would like what I’m serving and then scooping canned fruit onto plates with as much dignity as possible, I overheard quite a few conversations.

For example, one woman begged a server to help her carry her plate. She had just suffered a miscarriage, she said, and by the looks of her, it...