When Laura Eichenberger showed up at Metropolitan Ministries with her three young boys to volunteer and wrap bread for the organization's clients, she simply thought of it as a good way to get involved and serve the city.
Two years later, the work that she and a dozen other home-schooling families do has earned the organization $1,000 and a national award.
The recognition comes from the Super Service Challenge, a movement that reports it has given away nearly $11 million in support to nonprofit organizations since it was founded in 2011. Now it's thrown its support behind Laura Eichenberger and her team of volunteer families, who wake up early on Monday mornings to wrap boxes of bread for clients at MetMin.
Eichenberger and her children, or another family of volunteers, organize bread donated by Panera Bread, wrap it up safe and help distribute it to clients throughout the building, leaving plenty for anyone who needs it to come and feed themselves free of charge.
She brings her three boys, Seth, Aaron and Isaac, one of whom she carries on her back while she works, to help in the process because she believes the experience is invaluable.
"I think it's important to grow up helping others," she said. "It's hard to find opportunities for young kids to get their hands in the thick of things and help."
Miller Blaine, a marketing and development associate at MetMin, said Eichenberger and the other families fill an essential role at the organization because the staff is relatively small and there's a lot of work to be done.
He said, "what we found is we internally didn't have the volunteer power to wrap the bread."
"Laura and her family stepped up and got all these homeschooled families involved."
When Eichenberger heard about the Super Service Challenge on the radio, she leapt at the opportunity to submit a video explaining the work she and MetMin do, because resources are limited and the need for help is real. And she wants her children to understand why it's necessary for people to step up wherever they can.
"MetMin treats all who walk through their doors with the courtesy they deserve," she said. "This respect for all is a way of living that I want my children to learn."
Contact staff writer Emmett Gienapp at egienapp@timesfreepress or 423-757-6731.