Stephanie, a Volunteer Story

Stephanie Ferguson felt inspired to volunteer with Housing Transitions because she wanted to help local nonprofits! She created a list of nonprofit organizations she felt needed the most help in the State College area. This led her to reach out to Housing Transitions to see what she could do to help our residents. Stephanie has a love for cooking and organizing for people in need, and both of these skills have been put to good use at Housing Transitions!

Throughout her life, Stephanie's volunteer work has always revolved around hospitality. She has been active with Ronald McDonald houses and local food banks in multiple locations. At Housing Transitions she cooks dinners for the residents living in our shelter and puts together move-in baskets for the residents moving to their own apartments.

Stephanie has made four meals for our shelter, as well as completed five move-in baskets. Her background in restaurant management gives her the ability to make meals for a large number of people. Stephanie's favorite part about making meals for residents is staying and enjoying the meals with them. She shared that "cooking and food is her love language." Seeing the residents really love her food and go back for seconds and thirds is magical for her.

She has a love for organizing and has moved often in her lifetime. This gives her the knowledge of what is necessary for a move-in basket. Stephanie has a group of women who work with her to make the move-in baskets. The group continues to grow and is always looking for more opportunities to give back to the community.

Creating meals and making baskets makes Stephanie feel good about life. She is happy to be devoting her downtime to Housing Transitions and to helping make our clients' days a little brighter! Stephanie and her husband own a small food safety consulting company, have two adult children and are dog parents! We appreciate all of the time and energy Stephanie pours into Housing Transitions. She is making a difference!!