JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS -- Reserve Citizen Airmen from the 23rd Intelligence Squadron (23 IS) donated more than 1,000 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in the last month to local San Antonians in need.
Participating 23 IS members bought all the ingredients for the sandwiches, prepared them, and then delivered the sandwiches to Haven for Hope, a charity that provides care for people experiencing homelessness and food insecurity.
Master Sgt. Kanita Taponpanh, a 23 IS section superintendent, organized the squadron’s efforts and personally made over 200 sandwiches.
“When the opportunity came up to support Haven for Hope, it was overwhelming to see everyone’s interest and generosity. We really came through for some of San Antonio’s most vulnerable population,” Taponpanh said.
Haven for Hope is a charity located in downtown San Antonio that helps local residents with job training, childcare, medical care, education, behavioral health care, spiritual care, substance recovery, and offers many other services. However, providing meals to people experiencing homelessness has become especially important since the COVID-19 outbreak, as San Antonio foodbanks and charities have been running drastically short on the food.
Rolando Guerra, Haven for Hope’s Spiritual Services Senior Manager, reflected on the success of the program and the overall response from the local community.
“The “Sandwich Project” as we all came to know it, has been a very life-giving and compassionate project. It expresses just how much our city has a heart of compassion. It was just overwhelming to see the response and willingness to provide sandwiches,” Guerra said. “In the last few months, the total of sandwiches made [for all San Antonio volunteers] was over 50,000. Amazing!”
While 23 IS members enjoy organizing community service events (in December, the unit played bingo and served refreshments at a local retirement home), due to COVID-19, the squadron had to cease organizing in-person events. Providing sandwiches to Haven for Hope allowed the unit to continue to give back to the local community, while practicing safe social distancing measures.
Taponpanh reflected on the 23 IS’ sandwich donations to Haven for Hope, and the importance of continuing to give back to the community while practicing social distancing during the Coronavirus pandemic.
“Community outreach during a pandemic can be challenging for many reasons, this volunteer effort allowed us to safely incorporate our family members and build homelessness awareness within our community. We look forward to being able to provide more support to Haven for Hope in the future!”
The 23rd IS delivers premiere cyber intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance expertise through Total Force Integration, driving the employment of offensive cyber capabilities in support of Combatant Command objectives and priorities. To learn more about exciting and rewarding career opportunities in the 23rd IS, please contact your local Air Force Reserve recruiter or call 210-977-2671 for more information.