Stephen (third from left) and Mary Lang (fourth from left) pose with their Senior Service Award amongst The River Food Pantry staff.
The Rotary Club of Madison presented its Senior Service Award to Mary and Stephen Lang for their volunteerism through several organizations during the club’s meeting on April 19 at Park Hotel.
At The River Food Pantry, Mary and Stephen have collectively given over 2,000 hours of service since 2020. They are always flexible and have helped with a variety of volunteer positions, such as packing and distributing curbside groceries, preparing to-go meals, packing online grocery orders, and delivering groceries to the homebound. The Langs volunteer together three days a week for 4–6 hour shifts to help nourish thousands of Dane County households facing food insecurity.
In addition, at UW Health University Hospital, Mary has taken the initiative to maintain a clothing closet for patients in need. Every two weeks, Mary brings suitcases full of clothes and shoes, which the Langs purchase with their own money, to restock the closet. She neatly stacks and labels all the items according to size. Mary has been doing this all by herself for the past 20 years!
At the Agrace Thrift Store, Mary volunteers at least once a week to greet customers and use the cash register. By providing volunteer support, the store proceeds can help fund Agrace’s grief support services for the community.
Last but not least, as members of the Bluebird Restoration Association of Wisconsin, Stephen and Mary monitor 86 Bluebird houses in two Dane County parks during the summer. They check on them every 4–5 days and report to BRAW how many chicks the houses produce. Stephen also builds hundreds of bird houses. BRAW purchased 515 from him last year.
“We thank you, Mary and Stephen, for exemplifying service above self to make our community a better place. Congratulations on receiving our Rotary Club’s Senior Service Award,” concluded Rhonda Adams, Executive Director of The River who introduced the Langs to the club.