By Joel Langton
The 830 Times
The H-E-B Feast of Sharing success is due to one thing, and it’s not the plates stacked high with turkey and sides.
“The volunteers are the key to the success of the Feast of Sharing,” said Felipe Cardenas, center store leader.
The Feast of Sharing is H-E-B’s annual November food and goodwill tour across Texas and parts of Mexico, providing about
47th Flying Training Wing Command Chief (left) and Col. Tyler J. Ellison,
47th Flying Training Wing Commander (right) known as volunteers serving turkey paused to take a quick picture Saturday. The two were part of a Laughlin contingent volunteering at the Feast of Sharing. (Photo by Joel Langton)
340,000 holiday meals at 34 locations. It is the grocery chain’s effort at giving back during Thanksgiving in the communities where the company operates.
The 154,000 H-E-B employees can’t pull the feat off by themselves, and the grocery chain pulls in help from a variety of volunteers.
Luis Leija, HEB Top Store Manager said Saturday’s volunteers for the Feast here come from many different organizations, including Val Verde Regional Medical Center, Val Verde County Sheriff’s Office, Laughlin Air Force Base, Del Rio Police Department cadets and more than 100 students from Del Rio High School.
“I hate trying to mention one organization because there are so many that are vital to our success and I’d hate to leave anyone out,” Leija said. “But it would be impossible without our volunteers.”
More than 500 people volunteered Saturday, Nov. 16, from the local community that are vital to the effort, and here’s a spotlight on a few..
Claudia Lopez Cruz
Cruz wears many hats at the event, but for 30 years, she’s been known as the event’s entertainment coordinator.
“We give her a phone call, and she takes off,” said Luis Leija, HEB Top Store Manager.
“Taking off” means Lopez coordinates 10 acts, assigns times and also ensures there are plenty of sponsors inside the Red Oak Ballroom to pass out information to people.
She said helping the event is just part of her DNA. “I love serving our community and helping the Feast of Sharing is just sharing the talent I have,” Cruz said.
She said one part of lining up the different acts involves giving them specific amounts of time, depending on what type of performance they are.
“If it’s a band that has to bring in a lot of equipment, we’ll give them 45 minutes, if it’s a smaller group, they might only get 30 minutes,” Cruz said.
Leija said her efforts are invaluable. “There is no way we could do the event in the Red Oak as well as we do without her,” he said. “She is the one who makes it happen over there.”
Daisy Bocanegra
The Val Verde Regional Medical Center’s Daisy Bocanegra has been volunteering at the event since high school.
“We come from VVRMC and we love giving back to our community,” Bocanegra said. Bocenegra was working at the beginning of a Thanksgiving plate assembly line, as she placed two slices of turkey on each plate, and passed it to the right, where it would eventually receive dressing, mashed potatoes, gravy, a roll and other holiday delicacies before its carted out to a hungry visitor. The line turned out more than 3,100 plates in four hours Saturday.
It’s never a question if Bocanegra is going to volunteer but what organization she represents. She started volunteering in high school, served the last couple of years with her church and is now volunteering with her employer.
Victoria Vazquez and Carolina Lopez
More than 20 percent of the volunteers come from different
organizations at Del Rio High School.
Victoria Vazquez and Carolina Lopez, both seniors, volunteered with the high school’s National Honor Society and found themselves pushing the drink cart around.
“We love to help around the community and give back however we can,” Vazquez said.
For her cart partner Lopez, it’s been a long-running love affair with the event.
“I came to my first Feast of Sharing as a first grader,” Lopez said. Part of the reason she volunteers in the community is because of the people who took her to the first one.
“I always see my parents volunteering, and I see how they give back, so I’m just following their example,” she said.
Saturday, she put serving her community ahead of making money. The senior has two part-time jobs, and turned down a shift at one job for today.
“Last year, I didn’t volunteer, and this might be my last year since I’m graduating, so I wanted to make sure I got one last chance to serve here,” she said.
