Lineberger Addresses CalRTA Members
Fifty members and friends of the California Retired Teachers Association Division 33 (Hemet, San Jacinto, and surrounding areas) gathered together December 14th at the Seven Hills Members Club to celebrate the holidays, reconnect with former colleagues and help spread a little holiday cheer and goodwill in the process. With a desire to help fill the great need of local families and struggling seniors in our community, especially over the holidays, Division 33 members donated bags, boxes and wagon loads of food and toys to the Valley Community Pantry in Hemet. As a bonus, Jim Lineberger, Executive Director and CEO of the Valley Community Pantry, was CalRTA’s guest speaker for the event and reflected on the many trials and triumphs the Pantry has experienced over the past 57 years.
Established in 1965 by Reverend Roy Schipling of the Hemet Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, the Pantry was dedicated to ending hunger in our local communities. Lineberger joined the Pantry Board in 2007, two years after he came to Hemet, then took on the role of Executive Director shortly thereafter. His background assisting the homeless and less fortunate on the streets of Los Angeles Skid Row prepared him for this new position helping those in most need of help in his own local community.
The Valley Community Pantry currently serves nearly 14,000 registered families and seniors, assisting them with such necessities as food, utilities, prescriptions, and rental assistance. The Pantry’s motto is “Giving Hope, Helping Families, Blessing Lives,” and Lineberger is on the front lines when it comes to meeting these three goals. He knows what it’s like to be on the receiving end of assistance, his family having received food donations from the local PTA when he was growing up. The memory is what keeps him going. During his tenure – and with COVID-19’s closures and restrictions– it’s been a roller coaster of a ride with the Pantry, with some overwhelming challenges countered by generous and timely donations to keep them afloat, all of which has taught him to have faith. Grateful for the dozens of donated bags packed with toys and food items lined up on the venue’s stage, Lineberger reminded his audience, “We can’t solve world problems, but we can help solve the problems in our communities. We need to find a way to bless people and help people. We’re not the biggest or the best, but we do what we can.”
The Valley Community Pantry is located at 191 S. Columbia St. in Hemet, behind Trinity Lutheran Church, and is open Monday-Friday, 8:30am to1:30 pm. For more information about the Pantry or to make a donation, go to https://www.vcpcares.org/.
Sue Breyer, CalRTA Div. 33 Vice President
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