CONNECTING COMMUNITY
What began as a food pantry visit with her aunt became a calling to serve.
Today, Vanessa Tovar stands as a bridge of hope—connecting others to the same community that welcomed her.
When Vanessa Tovar first came to The Storehouse in 2019, she was just 18 and had recently arrived from Venezuela. She had moved here on her own, didn’t speak English, and barely knew anyone. Three weeks after she arrived, on a Saturday morning in April, her aunt brought her to The Storehouse to receive food—and that visit opened a door she never expected.
“I saw young volunteers helping people,” Vanessa remembers. “I told my aunt, ‘One day I want to volunteer here too.’”
With the help of a kind staff member and Google Translate, Vanessa signed up as a volunteer. Week after week, she showed up—through summer heat and winter cold—greeting neighbors and serving wherever she was needed. As she volunteered, she found friendship, learned English, and discovered that language could do more than help her communicate—it could connect her to community.
Throughout her four years of faithful volunteering, Vanessa also began her career— working physically demanding jobs while simultaneously taking college classes. Thanks to a providential conversation and her years of dedicated service, Vanessa joined The Storehouse staff in 2023 as a Neighbor Care Coordinator with Project Hope. Now fluent in English and Spanish, she helps hundreds of
Vanessa stands outside Smith Worship Center where she first starting volunteering in The Storehouse’s food pantry back in 2019. This fall, Vanessa stood on stage in this same hall addressing over 200 neighbors to share resources available through Project Hope.
families each week navigate resources for food, clothing, and other care.
Vanessa’s empathy comes from experience.
“When I help a neighbor who speaks Spanish,” she says, “I remember how it felt to be new and afraid. I want them to feel understood.”
“I remember how it felt to be new and afraid. I want them to feel understood.”
- Vanessa Tovar
Her mother, who now attends English classes in The Academy, often reminds her: “This isn’t luck, Vanessa. This is the result of your hard work.”
Today, Vanessa’s family—her mother, aunts, and cousins—all study English through The Academy and members of her family have also benefitted from Joseph’s Coat and Project Hope, each discovering new confidence and community.
This fall, in the same room where Vanessa first met The Storehouse in 2019, she stood on stage and spoke with neighbors about the impact of Project Hope. This full circle moment was proof positive of what Vanessa has experienced: when we speak the language of care, doors open and neighbors find hope.
Your support of The Storehouse makes stories like Vanessa’s possible—turning moments of need into bridges of hope for hundreds of families each week.
mother, Norka Jiménez, attends English as a Second Language (ESL) classes through The Academy. She has been a dedicated student since January 2024.
Vanessa’s
Vanessa checks in a neighbor during the launch of The Storehouse’s new food pantry appointment system in January 2024. She is often the first person that most neighbors meet during their visit.
Vanessa (far right) volunteers at the Thanksgiving food distribution in November 2019. She saw snow for the first time while volunteering with her newfound community at The Storehouse.
In a full-circle moment, Vanessa addresses more than 200 neighbors at the fall ESL assembly—standing in the same hall where she first volunteered as a shy teenager in 2019.
Vanessa’s family celebrates at The Academy’s end-of-semester ceremony in November 2024: (Left to right) Rosalinda Jiménez, Vanessa, cousin Luciano Vásquez, aunt María Jiménez, and mother Norka Jiménez.