AmeriCorps comes to the rescue
Juliana Russell took a ladle to a huge pot of beans. And smiled the entire time.
Close to three months into AmeriCorps’ Vallejo presence, Russell and a handful of others were instrumental in delivering Thanksgiving meals to the homeless.
After assisting Vallejo Together throughout the city Thursday, the group departs Tuesday to a Habitat for Humanity assignment in New Orleans, roughly 35 hours worth of driving.
Just another day at the office for Russell, 24, who calls Boulder, Co., home.
Russell was working with the Peace Corps in Morocco “when we got evacuated,” she said.
Down but not out, she was “turned on to” AmeriCorps, a volunteer humanitarian organization with the motto of “Be the Greater Good.”
AmeriCorps has been anchored to an Airbnb in Vallejo for nearly three months, with Russell joining “Nicole,” “Jacob,” and “Katy.”
All were smiles working the assembly line of food preparation Thanksgiving at First Baptist Church before delivering the meals.
“I love it,” Russell said. “I haven’t celebrated Thanksgiving in a very long time and I think this is one of the best ways to do it.”
Russell’s mother is from Colombia, which doesn’t acknowledge Thanksgiving. Her father, however, is from the East Coast.
“I had a strange balance. Some years we’d celebrate with friends and family, some years we wouldn’t,” Russell said.
Based with the same group in Vallejo, “they’ve become my family,” Russell said. “They really have. There has been so many great bonding experiences … living together in the same space.”
Not that Russell didn’t ponder potential problems.
“I’m an only child and I’ve lived by myself quite a bit,” she said. “So it was an adjustment. Not a challenge because it’s such a great group … but an adjustment.”
Russell said its AmeriCorps’ mission statement to “help empower vulnerable communities” while working with various nonprofits. The group’s focused on COVID-19 response and, before that, disaster relief from fires.
“We’re sent all over the country,” Russell said. “I love the travel aspects. I love volunteering in general. The fact we get to do it with this program is fantastic. That and going to all these new places is a dream.”
Russell called Vallejo “a charming little town. We’ve been here only 2 1/2 months, but the people are wonderful. Everyone’s been very kind.”
Marty Duvall, a Vallejo Together volunteer who led the AmeriCorps group on deliveries, had nothing but praise.
“Absolutely great,” Duvall said. “Every time we stopped, they would get out and knew exactly what their tasks were. They worked like a cohesive unit. They were a great help. Real high spirits and ready to do anything that was needed.”