Wonderful People Serving the Needs of Their Community – M2M Food Pantry
In 2015, Jana Hartwell Crisman and Timothy Green founded the M2M Matthew 25 Ministries Food Pantry at Trinity United Methodist Church in Shelbyville, Indiana. Every Tuesday, the pantry serves between 500 and 800 people in the Shelbyville area. Since 2015, the pantry has served more than 600,000 pounds of food to more than 47,000 deserving people.
To transport the donated food to the food pantry, Jana and M2M relied on a large truck to collect the food and bring it back to the pantry. Unfortunately, the truck they were using broke down forcing the pantry to have to use smaller cars and trucks to transport the food which resulted in the pantry having less food to pass out to the people in need. Luckily, thanks to the Koorsen Family Foundation, the WISH Patrol, and other generous donors; things were about to change for the better.
The WISH Patrol Reaches Out to the Koorsen Family
The WISH Patrol is part of WISHTV.com that recognizes great people in our community that have made a difference in other people’s lives. The people that are chosen by the WISH Patrol are first nominated by a peer. As part of the recognition, the WISH Patrol reaches out to local businesses and good-hearted individuals for gifts and donations to surprise the people with. Past individuals and groups that have been recognized by the WISH Patrol have included a volunteer at MLK Community Center, administrators at the Anderson YMCA, and a young family battling with ALS.
When the WISH Patrol chose Jana as their next person to surprise, they turned to Koorsen for help. The WISH Patrol knew that Jana and M2M needed a box truck to transport the food to the pantry. Luckily, a member of the WISH Patrol team saw a ‘Trucks for Sale’ sign on one of the Koorsen Fire & Security buildings that they passed along I70 on the east side of Indianapolis. They called Koorsen and eventually talked with Randy Koorsen, the CEO and owner. Randy and the Koorsen family were more than happy to help surprise Jana and M2M with the donation of one of their box trucks.
The Big Day - Full of Surprises, Tears, and Lots of Smiles
It was just another Tuesday in September at the M2M Food Pantry at Trinity United Methodist Church. People were walking down the steps into the pantry in the basement of the church where Jana and the rest of the volunteers welcomed them with warm smiles and open hearts. Others were walking out with boxes filled with food and hearts filled with joy. It was the same great scene that played out every Tuesday but with a few extra visitors this time.
The WISH Patrol team and all the donors, including Randy Koorsen and his daughter Kelly Hoffman, shuffled down into the basement to surprise Jana. With cameras rolling, Brooke Martin of WISH approached Jana and told her that she was being recognized for her great work. The Law Firm of Rowe and Hamilton presented her a check for $2,500 to buy food for the pantry. Jana also received a night out on the town with Harry & Izzy’s providing dinner and the JW Marriot providing a free night stay. But the surprises weren’t over. Everybody, including Jana, made their way upstairs and outside the church for the next big surprise.
It’s hard to hide a big box truck. When Jana made her way outside, Kelly Hoffman of the Koorsen family drove the truck down the street to where Jana was. With all the commotion of the cameras and the families cheering, it took Jana a few seconds to set her sight on the truck. Rolling down the street with its horn honking and fresh new M2M Pantry graphics on the side of the truck, Jana realized what she was looking at.
Kelly jumped out of the truck and handed the keys to the truck’s new owner, Jana and the M2M Pantry. “Wow! Oh Wow!” Jana exclaimed. The pantry had a new truck to continue their mission of providing food to the community. The final gift of this most wonderful day was a check from Granite Transformations for $500 for gas. It was a day full of great surprises for a wonderful person and a wonderful organization that does so much for the people of Shelbyville. Looking around the crowd of volunteers, customers, and donors; you could see through their smiles and tears just how important Jana is to this community.
You Too Can Make a Difference
Whether you are a business, a church, a family, a class, or an individual, there are many things that you can do to make a difference in your own community. Reach out to local food banks, food pantries, soup kitchens and churches to see how you can help feed those in need, whether through donations or volunteering. To learn more about M2M Matthew 25 Ministries Food Pantry, you can visit them here on Trinity United Methodist Church’s site.
The Koorsen family would like to thank the WISH Patrol for reaching out to them and letting them be a part of this awesome surprise. To learn more about the Koorsen family and their Koorsen Family Charitable Fund, you can visit their foundation page here.
