Volunteer of the Month
Julie Sterling 

Sometimes all you gotta do is ask. That was certainly the case for Julie Sterling, our volunteer of the month from the Northeast Loaves & Fishes Center. When her friend and fellow Rotarian Neil Kelly spoke at the Albina Rotary many years ago and talked about his experience as a Meals-On-Wheels driver and then asked others to sign up, Julie said “yes”. She’s been delivering hot meals to homebound seniors in Northeast Portland weekly ever since.

“There’s just something about driving a route,” Julie said. “I get really attached to the people on my route. I had one guy who always took his meal through the kitchen window—now he was a character! Others are so cheerful, even when it appears that they have no reason to be. I also like volunteering for Loaves & Fishes Centers because the commitment is finite. I know I’ll be done in an hour or so. It’s not like committee work where there’s always something to be done.”

Julie moved to Portland in 1960 from Evanston, Ill. where she had spent eight years as a reporter for a weekly newspaper. She joined the staff of the The Oregonian and worked as a reporter until 1963 when she married Don Sterling, a reporter and later editor for the Oregon Journal. The couple reared three children and Julie remained active in the community serving as a commissioner for the Housing Authority of Portland and joining the Albina Rotary – at Neil Kelly’s behest.

If you would like to know more about forming a corporate team to help deliver Meals-On-Wheels in your neighborhood, call Angel Pilato at 503.736.6325 ext. 86239.