MAY 2026
THRIFT VOLUNTEER NEWSLETTER
Keeping our valued volunteers informed
GM’s Corner The Work of Care at MCC Care & Share As the month of May arrives and Mother’s Day approaches, I find myself thinking about and remembering with gratitude my own mother and grandmother, both of whom shaped me deeply. My grandmother lived with us until her death when I was 10. My mother, though she died in 1995, was a steady presence in my life through many difficult years. As a child, I had several health issues and, as a result, spent a great deal of time with both. From my grandmother came my love of food and cooking, but the lessons I learned went deeper. It wasn’t about food; it was about feeding, about caring, providing, nurturing, and meeting the needs of those we love. The lessons from my mother were quieter but just as important: a steady, dependable love. As is often the case, it was my mother who took me to appointments, who accompanied me to the hospital, and stayed as she was able. In more ways than I could ever express, she was the one who kept showing up. She was not always expressive with her emotions, but through her actions she taught sacrifice, consistency, and the kind of love that stays through the good and the bad. Mother’s Day can hold many emotions and many memories. For me it brings these things to mind: care that is practical, love that is steady, and the quiet work of showing up for others. Those qualities are present in so much of what happens at MCC Care & Share: time given, patience offered, small tasks done well, and a willingness to handle what is in front of us with care. In a shop like ours, that matters. The atmosphere of a Thrift shop is shaped not only by what is sold, but by how people are treated, how work is done, and whether people feel welcomed when they come through the door.
That is part of what makes this work meaningful. We are not simply selling things. We are extending usefulness, preserving dignity, and turning what might have been overlooked or discarded into something that can serve again. There’s care in that. There’s stewardship in that. There is even a kind of hope in that. Through MCC, that care travels further. Everything we do here becomes part of the wider mission of relief, development, and peace. The ordinary work of an average day connects to something larger. What may seem simple in the moment becomes part of practical care and support for others, near and far. That’s one reason care feels like such an appropriate theme for Mother’s Day. Many of us learned our earliest lessons about care not through big speeches or larger-than-life efforts, but through daily acts of provision, patience, and presence. Someone making sure we were fed, cared for, helped, or held together when life was difficult. Mother’s Day reminds us that care is not always loud. Often, it is quiet, steady, and faithful. It shows up by being there, by doing what needs to be done, by offering what we can. I see that spirit often in this place and feel blessed by it. Thank you for the many ways you help MCC Care & Share be a place of welcome, care, and purpose. In your own quiet and faithful ways, you help us be the Care and live the Share.
Brian Ingram
General Manager MCC Care & Share