When anyone – whether it be a neighbor needing food, a volunteer, or another member of the community – visits New Direction Agape Services, there is one thing Madeline wants them to know:

“We want them to feel comfortable. We’re always excited to see new people,” Madeline told us.

Madeline has lived in southeast Colorado Springs, where New Direction is located, for years and has fallen in love with the community the neighborhood has fostered. She initially heard about the pantry from a friend and visited to get food for her family. After that first visit, she knew she had to get more involved and now has been volunteering for the past three years.

“The southeast side [of Colorado Springs] is like a family,” she said. “We’re always looking out for each other.”

And New Direction is a crucial part of that family. They provide food to anyone who comes through their doors, and make sure people know all the services that are available, including boxes and pre-cooked meals for people who are unhoused.

The food they get from Care and Share goes a long way in ensuring that families and individuals have what they need to thrive. And they know work isn’t done – Madeline emphasized that the need has only increased in recent months. For the first time, they’re seeing lines outside their building.

To help respond to the increase in need, New Direction received additional items – like meat, eggs, margarine, and cereal – thanks to special funding Care and Share received through El Paso County’s Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program. “The TANF funding has given us so much more food. We’ve gotten ground beef, eggs, and that has helped immensely,” Madeline said. “We’re then able to go out and buy the foods we need more of.”

“We’ve grown so much,” she said. “So we’re grateful to have this [food] and to be able to provide it to people.”