Volunteer Appreciation: Cathy Kuzma

Cathy Kuzma, a former volunteer in the US Together Toledo office, who made a huge impact on our donations sorting processes.

Throughout this month, we are featuring testimonials our volunteers in preparation for our virtual event, Celebrate Toledo, on December 1st. Celebrate Toledo is an event that celebrates the work that US Together has done, which includes the incredible work of our volunteers. This week, we  wanted to also highlight the work of a past volunteer, Cathy Kuzma. Currently, Cathy lives in Columbus, OH and continues to spend her time volunteering weekly for organizations like the Food Rescue and Planned Parenthood. When she volunteered here in Toledo, Cathy made a tremendous impact on our organization’s donations inventory and our staff wants to thank her for all of her work. We reached out to Cathy, who explained that volunteering has always been an important part of her life and that she works with organizations that enrich the lives of others.  Specifically with US Together, she says that she “will never forget the undying gratitude of the clients and their children as we helped them start a new life here in the United States.” Even though she no longer volunteers with our Toledo office, she says that “the expressions on their faces and the love in their hearts will always be a highlight of my life.”

Given that Cathy did so much to help organize and collect donations for us, she interacted with the local community significantly. She notes that “the generosity of the people in Northwest Ohio was overwhelming.”  When she began volunteering, she remembers that  the donations were in an unheated building and in huge 6-foot piles on the floor.  Corine Dehabey, the Director of Programs in Toledo, was able to procure bins for her and then she began sorting all of the donations.  The organizing took months, but once she was finished Cathy developed a system where new donations were easily put in an inventory and donations could be easily transferred to our clients when they arrived in their new homes.  When contacting Cathy to discuss her work, she couldn’t help but acknowledge the success of her work was due to the support of Corine and several other volunteers. She describes the experience as “an experience I will never forget, one that I learned and grew from, and will always cherish.” Cathy shows the collaboration needed to serve refugees in our community. Thank you Cathy for all of your work!  

Want to make an impact on the lives of refugees in our community?

· Apply to be a volunteer like Cathy here.

· Donate here to our holiday giving campaign so we can continue to provide services to refugees in our community.