By Grace Aspinall & Elise Morrow-Schap

"The freedom to live a healthy life is an essential part of the American promise," states Pete Buttigieg as his supporters heed the call to volunteer with his vision in mind. Pete Buttigieg knows where people require assistance and his supporters are rallying together in Northern Virginia to bring Pete's call to service to life. Elise Morrow-Schap, volunteer coordinator for the grassroots VA for Pete team, organizes several volunteer opportunities, inspired by Pete's message and example. "The world is so divisive these days," she states, "Pete brings about a sense of hope that's been lacking, especially in today's politics. He reminds us about the importance of community and helping others. We are all in this together and I am inspired to bring his sentiment to life through action. This is why we serve." Two valuable organizations, in particular, – the Capital Area Food Bank in Lorton, and the Habitat for Humanity ReStore in Chantilly- have been the focus of VA for Pete's team.

His Northern Virginia supporters want to "be like Pete" and give back to the community while helping those who lack some basic necessities of life. "We're talking about feeding people in need," explained Pete Buttigieg, which would, in part, inspire a group of his stalwart volunteers to give hours of their time and labor on the morning of January 11, 2020, assisting the Capital Area Food Bank.

"The Capital Area Food Bank is the anchor of the hunger relief infrastructure in our region, providing more than 30 million meals to people in communities across D.C., Maryland, and Virginia," states their web site. Buttigieg's team unloaded 200-gallon boxes containing paper bags of food collected throughout metropolitan Washington DC markets and food stores over the past several months. Each bag was opened, the contents emptied and sorted on the Food Bank's shelves. The bags contained hundreds of cans of vegetables, condensed milk, raisins, pineapple, soups and other staples such as baking soda, hot sauce and breadcrumbs. Meanwhile, other volunteers filled awaiting freezers with hundreds of pounds of donated frozen meats. Among these volunteers was Buttigieg supporter, Kyle Ruempler, who explained his connection to service and Pete's inspiration: "Pete has made service a strong part of his platform and his policy plans, because these shared experiences are what will knit this country back together. In volunteering with PFA and in my community, I've met people I never would have otherwise – of different cultures, generations, religions, and more. In a world that is so divided, and in a time where people find social connections so rare, these "Be Like Pete" service opportunities give us all a chance not just to provide for our neighbors, but also to meet your neighbors." Volunteer Sante Mastriana reflected, "Pete's message is about the value of service and the importance of local solutions for national issues. Democracy is about more than elections and news cycles. It's fundamentally about people and what we can do for each other to lift one another up. Election seasons come and go but by putting words into deed through events like this I know that what we're doing goes beyond sign-ups and phone calls. I know that I'm making a difference in my community."

January 4, 2020 found a hardworking group of Buttigieg volunteers reorganizing the Habitat for Humanity ReStore. They worked through sections containing lighting, appliances, household items and furniture. Their crowning glory involved a massive renovation of the book and movie sections, taking a once cluttered corner and opening it up for customers to walk through and peruse. Future time spent at the Restore will involve cleaning, sales, moving, pricing, stocking and reorganizing materials, along with extra efforts aimed at customer service, and donor appreciation.

The Habitat for Humanity organization uses their website to encourage people to give time and physical effort stating, "Volunteers are integral to the operations of the ReStore which help Habitat achieve their mission to provide affordable homeownership opportunities to families in Northern Virginia."

Buttigieg reaffirmed the need for increased assistance during a gathering on Martin Luther King, Jr. day when he explained "Seeing our nation fall short of its dream, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. called on America to live up to its values." His supporters are stepping up to the task. Richard Weiss, a Buttigieg supporter and recent helper at the Restore details the value he places on donating his time and manual labor: "Service provides opportunities for people at every ideological, theological and economic level to get together for a common cause, a common humanity."