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Life and Work with Amy Pfister

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Today we’d like to introduce you to Amy Pfister.

Amy, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I’ve think I’ve always had a heart for people not having enough food to eat. I remember when I was in grade school, probably fourth or fifth grade, my principal and teachers collected all of the food from one of our school lunches that were thrown out or not eaten and set it out on display for us to look at. It was a mountain of half-eaten sandwiches, fruit, milk, snacks, etc… all perfectly fine, but thrown out by us kids. This was at the height of the famine in Ethiopia too. The sight of all that wasted food really resonated with me and was very impactful. That’s when I remember the spark to want to make a change in the lives of others.

Throughout my education and adulthood, I’ve always gravitated towards helping others. My mom was a nurse so I think that caring for others was impressed upon me at a young age. I’ve had great takeaways from the different jobs I’ve had throughout my life and people I’ve met along the way. When I was hired on at SECORCares, it was one of those moments where I felt like all the jobs I’d had, experiences I’ve shared, lessons I’d learned, and people I’d met had led me to SECORCares. It was a very kismet experience for me.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
I think if your road in life has been totally smooth, you’re on the wrong road! I’ve had lots of obstacles throughout my life… honestly too many to name! That’s not really the point either, the obstacle. It’s how you navigate the obstacle that really matters.

I think we all when faced with a challenge, get overwhelmed. I know I do! But one thing I’ve learned over time is to practice the pause a little bit. If I can stop and take a step back and really look at what the challenge is, I can usually get some perspective and clarity to be able to: 1) accept it for what it is and 2) make a plan to deal with it. The ability to practice the pause is something I’ve been working on over the past several years and something that has made a tremendous impact on my attitude and approach in all aspects of my life.

So, as you know, we’re impressed with SECORCares – tell our readers more, for example, what you’re most proud of and what sets you apart from others.
I work in Development for an organization called SECORCares. We’re a non-profit that serves the residents of Douglas, Arapahoe, and Elbert Counties who are struggling with suburban poverty. This is the fastest growing segment of poverty in America, outpacing urban and rural poverty by 10% annually. Currently, there are close to 50,000 residents in the counties we serve who are affected. It’s a challenge in the suburbs because poverty here is very hidden… it doesn’t look like it does in a more urban/downtown setting. You may have three families sharing one home or families on the brink of foreclosure or eviction because their cost of living expenses are so high.

That’s where we can help. We offer a free food market where guests can shop (just like a grocery store) and pick out items their family will eat. Most guests leave with about $300 worth of groceries that’s enough to last them two weeks. This gives them some margin in their budget to then pay for things like rent, their mortgage, medical bills, etc. Additionally, we have several wrap-around services that we’re able to provide guests with as well such as medical/dental aid, job coaching and placement, counseling services, and more.

We’re very different from a traditional food bank in that our care and wording is different. We are a free food market, not a food bank. People are our guests, not clients or customers. Guests can shop and choose items their families will eat, we’re not giving them a predetermined box of food. Language and choice matter, especially to individuals who are struggling. We strive to serve our guests with dignity and compassion. Caring people caring for people is our motto.

In addition to our free market, we have a number of additional outreach programs embedded within SECORCares. We have a senior outreach program, SECOR Senior Cares for our senior friends, our Community of Hope self sufficiency program, a mobile food market we can take remotely and serve guests who can’t get to our physical location, and our Food for Thought program which is a weekend backpack program for local children who are at risk of not eating on the weekends.

I’m so proud of the work we do within our community, but there’s so much more work to be done. Just spreading the awareness to people that suburban poverty exists sometimes feels like an uphill battle. If you look around, many of the suburbs don’t look impoverished, so people don’t see there’s a problem! It’s what lies behind closed doors though that tells a different story.

Often it feels as if the media, by and large, is only focused on the obstacles faced by women, but we feel it’s important to also look for the opportunities. In your view, are there opportunities that you see that women are particularly well positioned for?
It’s such an interesting time to be a woman. I’ve often thought about the women who paved the way for the rights we have now and what they would think about the state of women today. Would they be surprised? Impressed? Disheartened?

Women are such unique beings. The layers and depths that we can feel something and self reflect are pretty incredible. We have the great ability to empathize with the plights of others that connects us in such a powerful way. The opportunities that can come from that level emotional intelligence are limitless. Whether you want to be a CEO of a major organization or you want to be a stay at home mom, all of the traits we inherently possess set us up to succeed at the highest level no matter what our chosen path is. I think oftentimes we sell ourselves short with self-deprecation and negative self-talk when what we should really be doing is cheering ourselves on! We’re women! No one else can do what we do! We multitask, resolve conflict (especially as moms!), are adaptable, listen, empathize, reflect, identify… I mean the list of our strengths goes on and on.

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Getting in touch: VoyageDenver is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.

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