It is Wai’s second time at Community Emergency Services (CES)’s Food Shelf, and she already feels welcome.

“I’m not a person who likes to ask for help,” she says.

Wai had discovered that CES Food Shelf provides free food through the CES website and was looking for a way to find fresh and nutritious food while also making her budget go a bit further.

“I’m a single mother, and I also take care of my brother. They don’t have much income, and [this is] somehow and someway I can help provide. Food is getting so expensive, so the onion and carrots here can help.”

Wai’s 23-year-old son has autism, and he can be very particular about what type of food he eats. “He only drinks organic milk, things like that. I can get him food here and it helps a lot. I can spend the extra money at the co-op. It helps me help him.”

“I want his mental and physical parts to function well, so he can be a productive person in society.”

As a bonus, the produce that Wai has brought home from CES has a stamp of approval from her son. “I brought salad home, and he said, ‘This is a good one!’”

Good food is not only a comfort to her son, but to Wai as well. “I like to cook my food—Chinese food. I can get a good noodle and Chinese vegetables here. I like noodle soup—it’s very healthy. It helps me feel stronger! It helps me feel good.”

“I have times where I spend money on a restaurant, and I feel miserable because I didn’t enjoy it! I’m just happy to cook my food. I always use onions to make my soup base, and my stir fry.”

We are proud to provide fresh produce—like Wai’s onions—to help neighbors prepare some of their favorite dishes.

“[CES] is very welcoming,” says Wai. “They have a heart for you. And they have a hope for you.”

Wai can cook meals that nourish her family and stretch her budget—because someone like you gave. Help more neighbors find that same hope at www.cesmn.org/donation-form.