Article by Gwen Jones, Department of Family Services
(Posted 2022 December)
Betsy Clevenger is a deeply compassionate person. Despite the tough times she has experienced, her desire to help others has never faltered. After raising two sons as a single mom and teaching math to middle-school students for over 30 years, Betsy chose to skip a relaxing retirement. Instead, she is devoting her retirement years to volunteering five days a week at The Mission Center, a food ministry that provides groceries and other basics to families in need in Annandale.
Betsy Clevenger was born in Annapolis during World War II. Her father, who worked in construction, was employed building military barracks so the family moved several times during Betsy’s early years, eventually settling in Pittsburgh, PA when she was seven.
Following high school, Betsy enrolled at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, studying to become a math teacher. After graduating, she got married and had her first son. Her husband was in the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) program, so they moved often, eventually living in France for three years, where they welcomed their second son. Upon returning to the U.S., Betsy’s husband was sent to serve in the Vietnam War. Not long after he came home, the couple divorced so Betsy raised her sons alone.
Betsy and her boys lived in Pittsburgh and Detroit before finally moving to Fairfax County. For 33 years, she taught math to middle school students in Arlington County. Betsy chose to teach children at this awkward age because of the deep empathy she felt for them, saying, “I think 13-year-olds are about the neediest people in the world.” She also sought to help the befuddled parents of her students better understand the behavior and struggles of their middle-schoolers. In addition to teaching, Betsy served as the leader of her teacher team, mentoring new teachers, guiding them to respond to the needs of their students to ensure that they were learning the material, rather than teaching by the book.
In 2007, Betsy retired after enduring a significant health challenge. Upon recovering, she pondered what God intended for her. After seeking counsel and praying with her minister, she knew she wanted to start a food ministry. Her church, Immanuel United Methodist Church, agreed to start the ministry under Betsy’s leadership. A short time later, the congregation merged with Annandale United Methodist Church, but kept their old building to serve as the site of the food ministry and other charitable work.
Called The Mission Center, the food ministry started small with volunteers packing 60 bagged lunches a week for the Bailey’s Shelter during hypothermia season. However, combatting hunger in the community where The Mission Center is located soon became their primary focus. Eighty percent of children who live nearby receive free lunch at school and attend a Title One school, so the need is great.
Betsy and her team of volunteers collected food donations that they gave to families in need in the community. They also worked with local schools to ensure that children and their families didn’t go hungry over the weekend by developing “backpack meals.” The backpack meals consisted of snacks and meals that were simple to prepare and light enough for children to take home in their backpacks on Friday after school.
Securing donations has been a big part of the center’s work, but people and organizations in the community have stepped up to help. Annandale United Methodist Church members give food and monetary donations, as well as volunteering their time. During Lent, all the church’s sacrificial giving goes to The Mission Center. The nonprofit Food for Others is a huge supporter, providing 1,000 pounds of fresh fruits and vegetables and 1,000 pounds of nonperishable food each week. Fresh produce comes from a variety of sources – Green Spring Gardens donates the extra vegetables grown during their gardening classes; and from May to October, farmers at the Annandale Farmers Market donate their unsold produce to the center. Additionally, The Swiss Bakery and several Panera Bread locations donate their unsold bread to the center.
Prior to the pandemic, The Mission Center was feeding about 75 families in the community. Families or individuals would visit the center to select needed items from the shelves. When the pandemic hit and schools closed, the demand for food in the community skyrocketed. Betsy also had to reevaluate their food distribution model to factor in social distancing measures. They decided to hand out bags of groceries once a week to anyone who lined up at the door. Each recipient was given two bags – one containing nonperishable food such as pasta and canned items, and the second containing perishable items milk, eggs, bread and produce. The number of people lining up to receive groceries each week nearly quadrupled during the pandemic.
In addition to the groceries, volunteers also handed out 500 meals twice a week, prepared and donated by World Central Kitchen, the food relief program founded and led by Chef José Andrés. As rates of infection slowed and places began to return to normal, World Central Kitchen closed their Washington, D.C. operation and no longer provided the meals.
A local food truck operator filled the void by agreeing to donate burritos every Monday evening while Betsy and her team of volunteers continue to assemble and hand out bagged groceries once a week. All the grocery bags contain the same items, and they try to select items that suit all tastes.
Every Thursday afternoon, volunteers gather at The Mission Center and work an assembly line to fill the bags. Later, the doors are opened and people who have lined up are given their two bags. Betsy is happy to say that they have never run out of food – everyone who lines up receives food each week.
The Mission Center has expanded their giving beyond food – handing out packs of diapers, feminine hygiene products, children’s clothing, or adult diapers on a different Thursday each month. A children’s clothing ministry has also been established at The Mission Center. Donations from church members and the community are sorted, bagged, and labeled by a team of volunteers.
Betsy credits the success of The Mission Center to the generosity of the community and her church, and to the hard-working volunteers who pick up donated food, sort vegetables, fill bags, and hand them out each week.
After 12 years of leading The Mission Center, Betsy is still going strong and loves what she does. “Gratification to me is knowing other people. Having a cheerful word and helping people,” she said. Her favorite part of the work is connecting with people – talking to them as they wait in line and finding out what they need.
Betsy recalls the story of a young English as a Second Language teacher from a local middle school who brought his students to volunteer at The Mission Center. He told her that The Mission Center was important to him because the center helped his family when they first emigrated to the United States. He recalled the gratitude his family felt toward both their new country and the center, telling Betsy “America took us in, and you fed us.” To Betsy, stories like his confirm that she is doing what she was meant to do, and she feels blessed that she has been given this opportunity.
To learn more about volunteer opportunities with The Mission Center, visit annandalechurch.com/missions. Donations of non-perishable food items, children’s clothing, diapers, brown paper grocery bags, and children's books can be left in the donation boxes outside The Mission Center, located at 7901 Heritage Drive, Annandale, VA 22003.
This article is part of the Golden Gazette monthly newsletter which covers a variety of topics and community news concerning older adults and caregivers in Fairfax County. Are you new to the Golden Gazette? Don’t miss out on future newsletters! Subscribe to get the electronic or free printed version mailed to you. Have a suggestion for a topic? Share it in an email or call 703-324-GOLD (4653).