We recently sat down with Carli, who has been with the Live-In Community for eight months now, to learn a little more about her work, her life, and her place in the Haley House community.
Carli led our conversation with “I love my work at Haley House.”
“I like that it’s a group of people working together–a community working together in the Soup Kitchen.”
You can find Carli in the Soup Kitchen almost every morning, either in the “vibe” role, where she is in constant conversation with guests, or cooking for around 100 people. Outside of that, Carli says the LIC spends their working hours doing things like ordering food and bringing in donations that get dropped off at Haley House. One of her jobs is a recycling run every Monday. Many would find this job tedious, but she enjoys driving the van and the opportunity to take a break from the city.
As for what she’s working on right now, Carli shared:
“We are working towards building a bigger community within the LIC, but also within the Soup Kitchen, with guests. I’m always working on that: getting to know guests by name and forming connections with them so they feel safe in the space.“
Her passion for service originally brought Carli to the Haley House Live-In Community.
“I was looking for something that was multiple years of service. I would do hundreds of hours of service growing up, with my sister and my mom through an organization called the National Charity League. I did a lot of service through college also–I did service at Haley House while I was in college, as a regular volunteer, and that’s how I found out about the community.”
As a Live-In Community member, Carli experiences the Haley House mission every day, and has a unique perspective on what food with purpose and the power of community means to her.
“I really like the mission statement. I quote and explain it to people a lot. It’s this idea that what we provide is food–that’s what brings people–but what makes them stay is the purpose: the connections we make through the food.”
“Haley House does a great job putting purpose to serving food. There aren’t barriers between volunteers and guests. Everyone enjoys the meal together and enjoys the space together. You can connect with guests by name and know their story.”
“It’s the power that a conversation over food has. There’s a sense of community that keeps people coming back.”
Carli shared one of those special Soup Kitchen conversations with me:
“I walked up to two guests, and they were having a conversation about high level mathematics–something I’ve taken classes in. They were discussing these intense topics in theoretical math. I sat down and had a long conversation with them about it. It was unexpected. It shows you that there are a variety of people who come in, with a variety of backgrounds. A lot have college degrees and knowledge and interests you wouldn’t expect. Every time those guests walk into the Soup Kitchen, I remember this conversation–they taught me something new.“
When she’s not on shift, Carli likes to go on runs and practice embroidery. Next time you see her in the Soup Kitchen, check out the patches on her overalls–she made them herself!
