February 2021: Volunteer of the Month

Charles Leister stands alongside fellow volunteers as they prepare meals for the day’s Soup Kitchen service.

Charles Leister has been faithfully volunteering with Project Host for seven years, typically twice a week. He’s our volunteer of the month in February because we know he can always be called upon to help if we’re short volunteers. We sat down with Charles to discover what motivates him to devote his time to the Soup Kitchen.

How did you learn about Project Host?

I had worked in a Soup Kitchen before when I lived in Ohio, and I just came by here and someone told me what it was, and it sounded like something I’d like to do.

What motivates you to volunteer at Project Host?

I enjoy this kind of work, and I like to know that food is going out to people who are thankful and grateful for the food that we cook. I also like working with the other volunteers. On Wednesdays (pre-COVID), we were just like family. Obviously right now things have changed a lot with us going from 14 to six volunteers, but any of the volunteers that come in are really great. I’ve met a lot of nice people.

What's your relationship to the guests? How (if at all) has your view of Greenville changed since working at Project Host?

Prior to COVID, it was a very close relationship [to the guests]. I don’t see a lot of the people that I used to see a while back, and wonder where they are. I think that might be because this area has changed so much. It’s become a very wealthy area, and it’s all become gentrified, so I’m not sure if some of the homeless we served are getting pushed out. There’s of course another sector of guests that comes here in cars, so we’re not really serving one particular group of people. But Greenville has become a totally different city in the 7 years that I’ve been here.

What's your favorite part of volunteering?

I love to cook the food. Also, there used to be a lot of people that I knew that I enjoyed seeing among the clients. Overall, it’s a very nice place to work. Everyone is very helpful and kind.