Volunteer Spotlight: Paul Crowley
You already know our kitchen is humming along preparing thousands of meals during the week, but have you ever wondered what happens at Project Angel Heart’s Denver office on Saturdays? It’s pretty quiet around here with one major exception – it’s our main delivery day!
That means volunteers like Paul are here making sure all the hard work from Monday to Friday pays off. Every Saturday morning, about 10 volunteers verify that every single client is accounted for, and organize hundreds of bags into 60 routes before deliveries begin. Paul works on this team to set up shuttle drivers and meal delivery drivers for success during the rest of the day.
Q: How long have you been volunteering with Project Angel Heart?
A: I’ve been volunteering with Project Angel Heart for sixteen years. I worked in the kitchen for about six months, then switched to Saturday distribution when my work schedule changed.
Q: Why did you decide to get involved?
A: I had known about Project Angel Heart and all the great things they do for quite a while, but I could not afford to donate money. When my work schedule opened up, I decided I could donate my time instead.
Q: You volunteer in distribution on Saturdays. What’s your favorite aspect of that role?
A: I like to organize things – which is ironic since my house is not very organized. Working in distribution satisfies my inner logistics demon.
Q: Any fun facts about your role?
A: My old nametag had the nickname I got during my time in the kitchen – Spud Stud. I chopped a lot of potatoes. If you watch the slideshow on the monitor across from Matt’s office, you can see it in the photo of the name tags hanging on the wall.
Q: Do you have any favorite Project Angel Heart memories?
A: There used to be a cooking shift on Saturday mornings, and the place would smell so good while we were organizing the deliveries. If we were lucky, there would be some food left over that we could try when all of the drivers had gone.
Q: What keeps you busy outside of Project Angel Heart?
A: I work two jobs (one full-time, one part-time) and I knit when I can. I sang in the Denver Gay Men’s Chorus for 20 years – now I’d like to get back to playing instrumental music.
Q: What’s your favorite food?
A: I like a good bacon cheeseburger.
Want to join Paul as a Project Angel Heart volunteer? Check out our full list of volunteer roles, including kitchen assistant in Denver and distribution assistant in both Denver and Colorado Springs, and sign up for an orientation.