The New Albany Food Pantry recently surveyed pantry clients to determine how to better serve our neighbors.
Among our population of Spanish speakers, we uncovered a need to learn English. So, we expanded our Community Resource Library offerings to include programs and outreach designed to meet this need, including “Conversation Partners” and Rosetta Stone programs. Inability to speak English fluently creates barriers for clients and can prohibit them from getting higher paying jobs to earn a living wage. So, we developed the Conversation Partners Program under the direction of the pantry’s English Language Learners (ELL) Coordinator, Angie Ojeda-Kreiman.
Conversation Partners matches English speaking volunteers with English Language Learners from our pantry community. The program provides a potential friend, and both partners have the opportunity to learn about the other’s culture and life experiences.
We started with 24 pairs in fall 2020. Due to COVID-19, Conversation Partners is virtual, but our participants think of it as having coffee with a neighbor. One pantry client practices job interview questions with her partner. Another feels that conversing with her partner is “so nice and comfortable, it’s like talking with an old friend.”
Some pantry clients do not qualify for the Conversation Partners Program because they know little or no English. This inspired us to apply for a grant through HMSHost Foundation to purchase Rosetta Stone English Language Learning technology. We currently serve 20 pantry clients in this program that rapidly improves their language skills.
Angie Ojeda-Kreiman and Karissa Esala
“We are very grateful for the opportunity that the New Albany Food Pantry has given us to begin the great dream of learning English,” says a client. “For us, the most frustrating issues are not being able to communicate or express our emotions and needs.”
Communication is a basic human need and a necessary skill to live a full life.
Many of our clients are in a new country, with a new culture, learning a new language and feel disarmed by an inability to communicate, work or make friends. The Rosetta Stone program is opening up new possibilities. We observe an inspiring dedication to the work it takes to learn and fluently speak English.
“I like Rosetta Stone because I’m learning lots of information and I like that I can use the program anywhere,” says another client.
Two clients are doing so well in the Rosetta Stone program that one has applied for a job with the NAPLS District and the other requested additional information on acquiring a GED.
Our clients are experiencing the dramatic benefits of learning English, including improvements to their lives and livelihood. Many of our pantry families were struggling financially before the pandemic, and the present circumstances make it even harder to find and maintain work while caring for children at home.
Our ELL programs help families move from a cycle of poverty to a life of prosperity. We are grateful for the generosity of the community in helping us truly change lives.
Jennifer Wilcoxon is the New Albany Food Pantry director. Feedback welcome at feedback@cityscenemediagroup.com.
