As Litty Paolone approached retirement in 2020, she knew she wanted to put her newfound time to good use. What she didn’t realize was just how much time she’d have.

Litty, an employee of the city of Philadelphia, was out of work for nearly three months, and began working with Philabundance as part of its COVID-19 relief team.

“Volunteering amid this pandemic, it humbled me,” she says. “I’m guilty — we all take things for granted. Who would have thought something like this would happen?”

It didn’t take long for Litty to become a regular fixture at the Galloway warehouse where she assembled food boxes for seniors and got to interact with Philabundance’s agency partners as they picked up supplies for their communities.

“I probably would have never realized without seeing it firsthand how many people need food who don’t have it,” she says.

Since then, Litty, who officially retired in August, hasn’t slowed down. She continues to volunteer four days a week —something she says helps her stay positive in such tough times.

“Philabundance has shown me that there is hope in this world,” she says. “They are here for everyone — no discrimination — and it makes me feel good knowing I’m just a little piece of that.”