UAW Local 2000 feeds those in need at Haven Center in Lorain

LORAIN — The kitchen at the Haven Center emergency shelter on East 30th Street was a flurry of activity Thursday as volunteers brought supplies in and carted out Thanksgiving food and desserts. The prepared food was destined for tables where those taking refuge in the shelter might get to take a break and keep out of the mid-30s chill of late November, spend time with family and friends or sit in front of the TV and watch the Dallas Cowboys and Buffalo Bills play. The Thanksgiving meal happened in no small part thanks to United Auto Workers Local 2000, whose members, their family and friends spent a good part of the day cooking, preparing and served meals for Haven Center clients. "We're just thankful we have the opportunity to do this," UAW Local President Bill Samples said, standing outside the kitchen at the center. It's just one of the ways members give back, along with annual toy drive collections and charity work, he said. Union member Amy Jaynes-Brown said she and her fellow workers were "blessed to have good jobs" and therefore able to give back in some way. Retired UAW Local 2000 members donated to the cause and some of Jaynes-Brown's relatives traveled from Pennsylvania to chip in how they could, she said. "We're just happy we can help people who are less-fortunate than ourselves," Jaynes-Brown said. Haven Center Director Gloria Olivencia said Mount Zion Baptist Church served lunch to 20 people at the center on Thanksgiving and she has lined up volunteers for Christmas Eve. The work of the volunteers left more than 70 people, including 28 children in need, "nice and full and nice and happy" on Thanksgiving, she said. With rent out of reach for some people and others struggling to find housing despite being employed, the center served 75 people this year who weren't otherwise able to find stable living quarters, Olivencia said. A lack of transportation also presents barriers: People have walked hours from Elyria for Haven's services, she said. Backed by its members and Ford management, UAW Local 2000 members will donate time to children and senior citizens served by the Haven Center and Neighborhood Alliance during events over the next three weeks. That includes a return trip to serve Haven Center clients on Christmas Day, officials said. "Our community means a lot to us," Samples said." There are a lot of hard-working men and women in the union who truly care, and we wanted to spend our days with the less-fortunate." Samples called all the work put in by the union membership "phenomenal." He said he hopes the lesson is absorbed by the younger generations and children of union members for the future. "We're doing our part to help the community. It's a real blessing to be able to do this," Samples said, as he greeted volunteers with hugs and handshakes and wished them a Happy Thanksgiving. "I'm just proud to be a part of it." Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com. Follow him at @daveobrienCT on Twitter.