October 2, 2009
‘Just feed them’
Linton volunteers remember words of Father Hilary Vieck
Ellen Buskirk prices items at the Thrift Shop which is on the property at St. Peter Church in Linton. (Message photo by Mary Ann Hughes) Click for a larger version.
By MARY ANN HUGHES (Messge staff writer)
Long-time Linton pastor Father Hilary Vieck died last November, but his legacy remains strong at St. Peter Church there.
The parish is located in Greene County, an economically depressed area in southwestern Indiana. “It’s such a depressed area,” says Martha Roach, treasurer of the Thrift Shop and Food Pantry. “Eighteen months ago, we would see 100 families a month. Now we have 200 to 250 families a month.”
Employment can be found “at the mines, at the hospital and at nearby Crane. Formerly we had two factories, but they both shut down and moved out. Employment is about zilch around here.”
That’s why the thrift shop and food pantry play such an important part in providing help to the poor. And the words of the late Father Vieck remain in every volunteer’s heart as they work with their customers.
“He never allowed us to judge them,” said volunteer Ellen Buskirk. “He said, ‘Just feed them.’”
St. Peter parishioner Cathy Burns adds, “We fed them physically, but he fed us spiritually.”
The thrift shop and food pantry are located on the grounds of the Linton parish, but it’s an ecumenical effort among several of the Linton area churches. The thrift shop is filled with clothing and shoes for adults and children, and the food pantry is stacked with canned goods, mixes, bread and peanut butter. Freezers are filled with hotdogs and hamburger meat.
The words “faith, hope, love, truth, job, peace, kindness, Jesus” are stenciled on the walls which also have two photos of Father Vieck and his words “just feed them.”
The store is staffed by volunteers from all the participating churches. “You wouldn’t know who belongs to what church because we all get along like brothers and sisters,” Ellen said.
During her years working with the poor, Father Vieck often said, “Whether they tell the truth or not, that’s on their conscience. Just feed them.”
“He was always saying that you cannot judge them. Just feed them. He never saw a stranger.”
Martha said often farmers in the area will donate beef to the food pantry, and local hunters will donate deer meat. “That’s helped tremendously too. And the K of C donates $200 a month to us for food.”