SEATTLE — "Please give what you can, and take what you need," Lien Titus said, reading from the instructions posted on the "little free pantry" in front of her Judkins Park home.
Sometimes compassion comes in a bright yellow cabinet.
"There are quite a few homeless people that come by. And then there are actually families who are able to pay their rent but they can't get food on their table," Titus said. "And those are the ones I really want to help."
Titus created this little free pantry at the start of the pandemic, as a way to help neighbors in need.
"It just boiled down to wanting to help the community out," she said. "I learned that from my mom, Betty Tisdale."
Tisdale was known as the "Angel of Saigon." She led a life of service, finding homes for Vietnamese orphans, including Lien. She went on to support and protect children worldwide through her Seattle-based humanitarian efforts.
"She did it globally," Lien said. "I want to do it in our backyard."
Neighborhood support exceeded Titus' expectations from the start and kept the cupboard full.
"I rarely have to ask my neighbors to help me out," she said. "They just bring stuff and put it in there."
When Titus was diagnosed with cancer last year, doctor's orders put the free pantry on pause.
"Because I was starting up the chemo and radiation," she explained.
She's still fighting the effects of the disease, but it can't keep her away from her beloved pantry.
"I can't sit still," she said.
Titus is re-opening the pantry with help from family, friends, and one very inspiring angel. Her mother.
"I thank my mom and God up there," Titus said. "This is my calling. I just love helping people."
Little Free Pantry Judkins Park welcomes donations through its Go Fund Me page.
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