After 27 years serving the hungry, United Samaritans co-founder retires. Sort of
After more than 26 years of serving Stanislaus County residents facing food insecurity, Maris Sturtevant on Friday retired from the United Samaritans Foundation nonprofit organization she co-founded.
Colleagues and Sturtevant herself described the work as her calling, while emphasizing how she plans to continue helping the homeless community through another Turlock nonprofit in her semi-retirement.
“I feel very fortunate to have been able to do this work for all these years,” Sturtevant said. “I always took it that God placed me here in this place at that time in 1992. It’s not been a job, it’s not been a career, it’s been a vocation for me.”
Sturtevant founded United Samaritans in 1994 with about five others. Two years earlier, she also helped start the Daily Bread Ministry food program at Sacred Heart Church in Turlock. The two merged in 1996 and Sturtevant said she never expected the food program to grow into its current operation, which serves about 36,000 lunches a month.
The mobile lunch program alone has expanded from the initial Turlock and Hughson routes, the latter covering Hughson, Empire, Waterford, Hickman and Denair, Sturtevant said. Now, United Samaritans serves five routes throughout the county and recently began feeding seniors in Hilmar, said grant writer Dana McGarry.
John Rogers, president of the organization’s board of directors, said Sturtevant and her ex-husband Bill had the vision for United Samaritans. Helping people is Sturtevant’s passion, Rogers added, and she will continue to while working across the street as the We Care Program’s executive director.
Before retiring from United Samaritans, Sturtevant said she worked from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. as the operations manager and then went to We Care until 8 p.m. Now, the 73-year-old said she can spend more time with her five grandchildren and husband, Russel. When she and some of her family contracted COVID-19 in December, it changed her perspective on spending more time with loved ones, Sturtevant added.
Michelle Allen, who began working with the organization about two months ago, will succeed Sturtevant as operations manager. Overall, Sturtevant said she thinks United Samaritans will run smoothly after her departure, including under the leadership of Executive Director Linda Murphy-Julien.
Turlock colleagues, co-founder reflect on service
One of Sturtevant’s strengths is listening to people to determine needs and action steps, Murphy-Julien said. She has known Sturtevant for about 40 years through Sacred Heart Church but began working with her in September 2019. As the city cleared homeless encampments this spring, Murphy-Julien said they worked together to adjust lunch truck routes as needs changed.
“There isn’t a job that woman has not done,” Murphy-Julien said. “She’s on the forklift, she’s driving the truck, she’s making sandwiches, she’s answering the phone. She has taught me a lot.”
Over the past 27 years, Sturtevant said she has seen the number of people struggling to afford food change with economic conditions. Overall, she added, homelessness seems to have expanded since the Great Recession (2007-09) from mostly Vietnam War veterans to different populations from families to youth.
Besides directing homeless clients to resources, Sturtevant said her other duties have ranged from applying for grants to buying food from vendors. As a co-worker, McGarry said, she is generous, giving and considerate. Sturtevant never gets ruffled, she added, and is always positive.
“It was as if she was created to do this job,” McGarry said. “It fits her perfectly with her personal convictions and her personality.”
Both Rogers and Murphy-Julien emphasized Sturtevant did not completely retire, despite all the speeches about her legacy at an open house event in her honor Friday.
The We Care Program and United Samaritans operate as separate organizations, but Murphy-Julien said they collaborate often. So, even though Sturtevant will work across the street instead of in the same building, Murphy-Julien said, Sturtevant will be on speed dial.
