The Sacred Heart Food Pantry is similar to a warehouse filled with brown Safeway bags and stacks of cardboard boxes and crates, with a distinct smell of avocado and turkey from the Togo’s sandwiches that are given away at lunch.
There are so many boxes stacked tall and wide that it seems as if there are no walls.
Somewhere in all that, walking back and forth, is 15-year-old Danny Tran. He visits the pantry every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, volunteering at least four hours each time.
Sacred Heart Community Service is a non-profit organization based in downtown San Jose. The non-denominational homeless shelter aids children and adults who are living in poverty.
The motto on the wall outside the community center says it all: “Feed the hungry. Clothe the needy. Welcome the stranger.”
Three days a week, that’s Tran’s job. During his time in the community center, Tran usually packages food, sorts clothes and “helps the needy,” said Katrina Huynh, a colleague of Tran’s at Sacred Heart.
Huynh says Tran is “dedicated, pretty friendly and works hard.”
He deals with a wide range of customers – some young, some old, some just needing to hear a comforting voice.
On a recent afternoon, Tran, dressed in jeans and a blue plaid shirt buttoned just enough to still reveal a red shirt underneath, was working in the front of the pantry. He was responsible for handing out food.
A woman walked up to the counter, seeming a bit embarrassed for being in the center.
“Can I have diapers?” she asked.
“Sorry. I asked the coordinator, and we don’t have any more,” Tran said sympathetically.
The woman’s face fell. But Tran said, “Have a nice day” and handed the woman a bag of food. For a moment, she smiled brightly.
“Since the customers are in a situation where they need to get food, I don’t react sad or show how I feel when people are mad,” Tran said. “That’s the bad part of working here … with mad people.”
Tran’s interest in volunteering was triggered when he researched world problems for a project at Pioneer High School in San Jose last October, focusing on poverty.
The project consisted of 30 hours of experiencing poverty, working with the community and writing about it.
That’s when he began working at Sacred Heart. After he finished, however, he realized how much he enjoyed volunteering his time. From there, Tran began trying to find ways to give back to the community.
His 30 hours long past, he is still at Sacred Heart.
“At least I’m doing something for an organization,” said Tran, who will be a junior this fall.
Aside from spending his time storing, giving and packing food, Tran has a full life away from the homeless shelter.
He’s been doing karate for a year. He plays badminton. He performs in school musicals, such as “Fiddler on the Roof.” He also enjoys playing tennis, eating out with friends, having study groups or going to the mall.
But he’s sacrificed all of it at one time or another for his volunteer work.
His favorite TV show is “The Simpsons.” When asked which character he can relate to, he casually asked, “Does gender affect it?”
He chose Lisa and followed with a laugh, explaining, “I’m not mischievous like Bart.”
“He’s fun to hang around with,” said his friend Melissa Nguyen, who describes Tran as fun-loving. “You can never get bored with him. He’s shy here and there, but he’s great.”
Tran hopes to become a graphic designer and create ads and commercials. He adds that he plans to keep volunteering.
“I want to come up with TV ads that will give more motivation to get people to volunteer,” he said. “If people stepped up and did a couple of hours once in a while, then the community would be a friendlier and stronger place.”