Volunteer Spotlight
The current Volunteer Spotlight shines on NATALIE SNEDDON
Natalie started life in Rockaway Beach, New York but moved to Decatur, GA 30 years ago to work for CNN. When she isn’t editing video for the news, she can be found volunteering at A Home for Everyone in DeKalb as the Communications co-chair. She feels very passionate about telling people’s stories, through video interviews, A Home’s monthly newsletter and their website. “When people share their stories with me, I tell them I feel honored that they are trusting me enough to share what they have been through”. She started volunteering at Threshold Ministry in 2019 because of a desire to assist unhoused individuals whom she had met outside the Decatur library. “These guys were hanging out on benches and just chatting away and one started a conversation with me and we just became instant friends. I’m a real curious person by nature and I honestly just wanted to learn more.”
Natalie is a member at the Unitarian Universalist Congregation of Atlanta (UUCA); her caring work with others is grounded in the UU principal of the “inherent worth of dignity of all people.” She’s part of the Homeless Advocacy group at her church that provides meals at the Bashor Men’s Shelter, Nicholas House, and Clifton Ministries. Natalie states that she “has a tendency to overcommit myself,” noting that in addition to volunteering at her church, Threshold Ministry, and A Home for Everyone in DeKalb, she also spends time volunteering at the Atlanta Free Fridge (located at North Decatur Presbyterian) and recently, as part of a group assisting an unhoused family in Decatur. She sometimes finds it frustrating to not have all the answers when a person is seeking help. Natalie loves her fellow volunteers at Threshold Ministry, stating “it feels like we are on the frontline of a very serious problem and we are giving all we can so people know that we care and they aren’t alone.” One of her most meaningful moments at Threshold recently occurred when a man came in with a form he needed to fill out and he wasn’t able to write. “We were going to send him to another agency but I just offered to sit down and help him. We filled it out together, he was so grateful and it filled me with joy.”