[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 175 (Monday, November 14, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1133]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING VICKI COLBERT

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON

                             of mississippi

                    in the house of representatives

                       Monday, November 14, 2022

  Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor the 
community efforts of Vicki Colbert.
  For decades, Stewpot Community Services has helped people 
experiencing homelessness by providing shelter, clothes, and food. 
Recently, a new face behind the scenes has made a big impact on the 
community, one meal at a time. Vicki Colbert, known as Mama Vicki, 
wants every single meal she serves at Stewpot to be her best one yet.
  ``If I don't eat it and it doesn't taste right, it doesn't come out 
of this kitchen,'' she said.
  Stewpot serves up to 150 hot meals to those in need, plus another 70 
for Meals on Wheels. Colbert is the woman behind it all, but she didn't 
exactly plan to be there. The nonprofit group was suddenly without a 
chef last fall. Colbert, who is a retired education administrator with 
a culinary background, just happened to be volunteering that week.
  ``She had already been here as a volunteer, and I heard about her in 
the kitchen and heard about her food, so I came just to try it out and 
found that she made the most delicious mac 'n cheese,'' said Jill 
Buckley, executive director at Stewpot Community Services.
  It was so good, in fact, that Buckley said they asked her to stay for 
just one week. Nearly a year later, Colbert couldn't imagine being 
anywhere else.
  ``If I wake up every day in my right mind and I'm able to walk and 
talk, I need to do something grateful with that, so I come to 
Stewpot,'' Colbert said. ``This is not a job for me, this is a 
ministry.''
  It may be considered a soup kitchen, but she's serving much more than 
your average chicken noodle soup. From Southern-fried catfish to 
homemade hushpuppies, Colbert is making real homecooked meals out of 
donated food.
  ``It requires someone in the kitchen, or some people in the kitchen, 
who can take whatever is donated and make a meal out of it. That's a 
skill,'' Buckley said.
  ``My sisters and brothers told me the same thing,'' Colbert said. 
``Give Vicki some sugar and flour (and) she can make a meal.''
  That familiar magic touch is how she earned the name Mama Vicki. 
Handwritten letters from some of the Meals on Wheels recipients are 
proof of her impact. They say how thankful they are to have her.
  ``I'm glad that I'm here,'' Colbert said, ``I know it had to be a 
calling that I had to do.'' I love these people, I really do.''
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Vicki 
Colbert for her outstanding service to her community.

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