ST. MARY PARISH — For more than 20 years, Mary Stansberry has welcomed people through the doors of Little Zion Community Outreach Center in Verdunville, providing food, guidance and hope to families facing difficult times. While the pantry helps meet physical needs, Stansberry said its mission has always gone much deeper.
"Yes, I give out food, but I give more than just food. I give, I give spiritual counseling and some people come, they don't really want the food, they just need to know that they can make it. They just need to know that all is not lost and that's what I'm, I'm here for," Stansberry said.
Stansberry credits her late husband, the pastor of Little Zion Church, for inspiring her lifelong commitment to serving others.
"I'm here because of him. I'm doing the things because of him, because wherever there was a need, he would move with compassion," she said.
Her journey, however, was not without hardship. After her husband became bedridden, Stansberry also experienced the loss of one of her children just hours after birth. She said the tragedy sent her into a deep depression until an ordinary piece of candy nearly led to another unimaginable loss. When one of her other children began choking, Stansberry said the frightening moment became a turning point in her life.
"The Spirit of the Lord spoke to me and said, this one you have in your hand, the other one you had no control over, so I jumped out the bed and hit him in the back and the candy jumped out. That spirit, that made my faith grow right then to show me that. I needed to look to the future and not to the past," Stansberry said.
Since then, Stansberry has devoted herself to serving the Verdunville community in a variety of ways. After her husband's passing, she stepped into his role as pastor of Little Zion Church while continuing to operate the Little Zion Community Outreach Center, mentor at-risk youth and ensure families have food on their table. She said one of the greatest rewards is watching the children she once helped grow into adults and raise families of their own.
"And I'm rewarded when I get to see all of these little kids all grown and have their own children and it just satisfies me," she said.
Although the outreach center has served the community for decades, Stansberry hopes more people will learn about its mission. She encourages anyone looking to give back to visit the center in Verdunville, volunteer their time and help continue the work of serving neighbors in need.
"Success is doing what you love to do and getting joy out of it, and that's what I call it for me, I'm successful! so I thank God…I can tell my story so I can let people out there know that this place is here," Stansberry said.
