Winter Volunteer Excellence Award

We’re proud to announce Ken and Suzanne Smith, recipients of The Matthews House Winter Volunteer Excellence Award.

They have been truly devoted to The Matthews House in word and deed for over 4 years. Let’s hear a little bit more from them:

So, where ya from?

Ken: Colorado native, Colorado Springs, CSU graduate

Suzanne: California (7 ½ miles from Disneyland), lived for 4 years (early 20’s) in NYC

In what ways do you like to volunteer?

Ken: Serving the youth and families; meals; hope to offer classes at some point.

Suzanne: I enjoy baking and cooking for the youth and basically spending 1 on 1 time with them listening to their stories.

Why did you choose the Matthews House?

Ken: Jerri Howe’s passion and vision early on; all of the staff.

Suzanne: Ditto, listening to Jerri talk about the Matthew’s House encourages one to help.

What do you like best about volunteering?

Ken: Personal satisfaction in being able to give back.

Suzanne: During a couple of my shifts as a House Volunteer a couple of the young moms brought in their infants and let me hold them. It was great to see the care and love these moms had for their children. But the best thing about being a house volunteer is just having the youth show up and hang out during my shift. I really enjoy talking to them.

For several years, along with their son Baxter, the Smiths cleaned the house monthly, making sure it was dirt free and comfortable for all that entered (even to the point of discovering a nasty wasp nest on the back of the house).

Suzanne currently hangs out and talks with the youth as a weekly house volunteer, helps regularly with administrative duties and provides yummy food for a variety of purposes. Her dedication and consistent presence is so beneficial to the youth that we serve.

Ken began by doing some vocational mentoring with some of the first Matthews House youth. He was able to give these couple of youth a great experience and a good recommendation to later benefit them in the food service industry. Additionally, for three consecutive years he led student groups at CSU in preparing our Thanksgiving Dinner for about 50 youth. He is also a member of The Matthews House Board of Directors and big time advocate for getting people involved at the Matthews House. In the last couple years, I’m pretty sure he has sent more people our way than any other person. What a great way to make an impact!

Thank you Ken and Suzanne for giving selflessly to youth in need in our community!

Vanessa Aschmann, Volunteer Engagement Coordinator at The Matthews House