Residents of Our House recently enjoyed a lunch and dinner courtesy of employees at the UAMS Translational Research Institute (TRI).

With staff donations totaling almost $900, the TRI Employee Council was able to prepare homemade meals for 30 residents at lunch and 75 residents at dinner. Lunch included oven-baked barbecue chicken sandwiches, baked beans, coleslaw and Rice Krispie treats. The dinner menu was lasagna, fresh salad, garlic bread and homemade fresh baked cookies.

Our House’s mission is to empower homeless or near-homeless families and individuals to succeed in the workforce, school, and life through hard work, wise decision-making and active participation in the community.

“We are super thankful for organizations like the UAMS Translational Research Institute who come out and help their community in such a big way by serving meals for the residents at Our House,” said Caroline Robbins, Our House development director. “Preparing meals and gathering around a meal table include a lot of components of what building a community around yourself looks like, and we value partners who are willing to take the time to do that with our clients every single month.”

Paul Duguid, MPH, leads the TRI Employee Council, which organized the community service project.

“I’m happy to work where the staff are committed to teamwork and service to our community,” said Duguid, assistant director of Funding Programs. “My TRI colleagues consistently rally around events to give back to those in the community, both on and off campus, and I’m incredibly proud of working shoulder to shoulder to prepare and serve meals at Our House with them.”

TRI volunteers were: Paul Duguid (lead), Ty Stacey (lead), David Avery, Lasha Fite, Chaz England, LaDiedra Donahue, Laura James, M.D., Robin Liston, Crystal Sparks, Simone Walls, Crystal Walter, and Vallon Williams.