By Anna Skinner
One man aims to make a difference in Westfield for those less fortunate.
Tim Hahn, of Westfield, is the president of Helping Hand of Hamilton County. He’s been busy for the holidays, but he tries to help those who need it whether there is something to celebrate or not.
Helping Hand distributes food every Saturday except the first of the month starting at 10:30 a.m. at North Glenn Village trailer park near Grand Park. Volunteers are broken into teams to help distribute the food, and the work is complete by noon.
“I could tell story after story of some pretty cool things that have happened that you don’t expect. when you do this kind of work, things happen as a result of it,” Hahn said.
The mission began in the 1990s when Hahn joined a Baptist minister from Chattanooga, Tenn. to help feed the poor in Indianapolis. In 2008, Hahn referred to himself as the “first missionary” and branched out to create Helping Hand of Hamilton County.
When his mission first began, he was in Eagletown and only five families showed for food collection. Now, after moving to Westfield, most Saturdays he gets 50 families.
Hahn said Hispanics are prevalent, but the language barrier does not cause much trouble.
“I have learned that smiles and hugs will get you by because that’s universal,” he said “A lot of times the language barrier is there, and someone will start crying because of what we’ve done for them and it’s just sincere.”
Hahn and his team of volunteers gave out Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners to those who needed it. However, food is not his only focus. When back to school time rolls around, Hahn gives out backpacks to kids who need them. In October, Helping Hand of Hamilton County gave out 150 coats. People in need also approach him on their own time.
“People will talk to me if they’re having trouble with utility bills, especially heat which is a big item in the winter time,” Hahn said. “I take the bill and ask why they can’t pay it, typically it’s because their hours were cut down. You might get into someone having trouble making the rent.”
Though there are some issues that Hahn can’t fix.
“I’m kind of like a general practitioner, but if someone comes to me with an abuse situation or a documentation situation I can refer them out to sources,” he said. Hahn said when that happens, information is kept very confidential.
Some grocery stores, such as Kroger and Fresh Market, assist Hahn with his food supply and he said that because of their participation, he generally doesn’t need food donations from the public. One thing he won’t ever turn down though is volunteers.
“What I really love is when a mom and dad will bring the kids (to volunteer),” he said. “These people don’t have very much. I always ask (the kids) to bring something of their own and they’ll hand someone that jacket and they won’t forget that.”
To volunteer, email Hahn at [email protected] or call him at 714-5582
