Ingrid was born in Badenhausen, Germany only a few years before World War II. At such a young age, she had no idea what a war meant. Hitler screamed and she did not like it, nor did her mother. Their community did not know what the Nazis were doing to the Jewish people and later when they found out they were stunned.
Everyone did what they could to help during the war, but at times there was nothing to eat. "At one time it was really bad, but the war was over by then," Ingrid recalls, "For almost ten days we had nothing but water with salt in it, and it was really bad. We were weak." Her mother turned to a neighboring farmer for help and he brought some food to them.
Eventually Ingrid met her future husband and they wrote letters back and forth. Her father wrote to U.S. Senator Hickenlooper and Ingrid was able to come to the United States to stay with her husband and get married. At first she was unsure of moving away from her home country. They travelled from New York to Chicago to Iowa. They had made friends in St. Joe, so they moved into a trailer park before renting a house later down the road. Her nerves were quickly settled.
"When I came there was so much food to eat!" Ingrid said, "I couldn't believe it."
Ingrid has now lived in the U.S. since 1955 and at one point somebody told her about a place in St. Joe where you can get some extra food to help you out. That place was Second Harvest. Ingrid was surprised that food was just given away. She had never heard of such a place in Germany! She visited the pantry for the first time and was happier than ever.
"As long as we have Second Harvest, I don't think anybody needs to go hungry. I hope it never goes away. I hope it's always there and helps someone like I was at one point."
Today Ingrid excitedly awaits her monthly senior box and to see what's inside. One of her favorite parts is getting to know the staff and volunteers. "The people there are very helpful. They're kind. They bring out the box and put it in your car."
If she could give someone in need one piece of advice it's this, "I'd tell them the people there are wonderful. They're going to be there for you. You will not believe, they'll help you out and you'll go home happy."
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