Employee spotlight: Laurie Peek
Laurie Peek has either worked or volunteered at the Community Cupboard since the 1980s.
Community Cupboard employee Laurie Peek moved to the Upper Valley 51 years ago. Apart from a six-month stint in Guatemala, she’s been here ever since.
“Before that, I had never lived anywhere for more than three years, so I guess I like it.”
Laurie has worked or volunteered for Upper Valley MEND longer than anyone else. In the 1980's, Carl Florea—MEND's first Executive Director—wrote a grant to pay her to come to the Cupboard for a couple hours a week and help people who needed it. These included newly arrived immigrants who needed help navigating the medical system, for example, or someone needing a Spanish/English interpreter. Later, she volunteered at the Cupboard, when the thrift store was housed in the same room. She recalls working by herself on Saturdays, putting together boxes of food for shoppers, then running to ring up someone else who wanted to buy clothing or household goods.
When MEND decided paid staff needed to be present when volunteers were working, Laurie got hired. She’s been a mainstay at the Cupboard ever since, working several days a week, and still works on Saturdays.
Choosing a lifetime of service to others
“I love working at the Community Cupboard,” she says. “I like serving other people. I like the whole principle of helping people have what they need. It feels like a good part of the community to be a part of. And I work with a lot of great people.”
When Laurie first moved to the area, she taught French at the Peshastin-Dryden High School. After one year, they asked her if she could teach Spanish, too.
“I don’t know what made me say yes,” she said. “I didn’t speak Spanish. There must have been a part of me that wanted to do that, but it ended up being such a gift—it was the segue that led me to working with Latino people.”
Laurie’s roles at the Cupboard have blended well with her longtime dedication to the local Latino community. For 20 years, she worked as a migrant home visitor for Cascade School District. She is also very involved in the Leavenworth Immigration and Race Justice Group. She teaches free English classes to Spanish speakers, interprets regularly for patients at the Free Clinic, and is still friends with one of the first Latina women—Lupe—who moved to the area in the 70’s, when nearly all Latino migrant workers were men. Spanish-speakers used to come to her house—dozens a month—to ask for her help, which is what led Carl Florea to write the grant that led to Laurie’s involvement at the Community Cupboard.
Laurie has watched MEND grow and change considerably over the years. The thrift store moved out of the Cupboard space and became Das Thrift down the block. Financial assistance, affordable housing and free medical care all became part of the services MEND offered. She points out how great it is that MEND has a social worker on staff.
“I never would have envisioned what it’s become,” she said.
Despite watching need grow from the days when she could handle food pantry visitors and thrift store shoppers on her own, Laurie isn’t brought down by the growing number of people who need help.
“I get worried about the people, but it doesn’t depress me to work with them,” she said. “I still have hope about the people we can help.”
When people come into the Cupboard who are clearly uneasy needing the free food the pantry provides, Laurie does her best to make them feel welcome.
“I just try to help them feel comfortable,” she said. “The experience is what teaches them that it’s ok to come.”
Laurie says many people who come to the Cupboard say they’re going to take less so others can have enough. One woman always says she’s going to take less so that other people with kids can get what they need. “We have enough for everyone,” Laurie tells them. “She and the kids can both have food.”
“Laurie is a local treasure and has been Upper Valley MEND's heartbeat for decades,” says Human Services Director Bob Mark. “She embodies our mission of meeting each need with dignity and has helped our organization define compassionate service. With her bilingual skills and deep cultural understanding, Laurie makes every person feel welcomed and valued. She is irreplaceable, and our world needs more people like her!”