ALBANY, Ore. — Watching Charles DeJesus quickly fill portable food containers from a mobile kitchen in downtown Mill City, it’s easy to see he is definitely a man on a mission.
He doesn’t stop or even slow down for a minute as he fills box after box after box, then hands them to waiting families, offering a hearty greeting as well.
Every day for more than a month, DeJesus, a 38-year-old lieutenant with the Salvation Army based in Albany, has prepared and served meals to families in the North Santiam Canyon who were affected by wildfires.
As of last week, he has served more than 4,500 meals — breakfasts, sack lunches and dinners — seven days a week. Until a week ago, when he contracted for meal prep with the Corvallis Elks Lodge, DeJesus did all of the cooking as well as the serving.
It has meant 18-hour days, two trips a day from Albany to the canyon communities of Lyons and Mill City, buying groceries, servicing his mobile kitchen and passing out much-needed food to anyone who stops by.
He feeds all comers without question of need.
“Who am I to question if someone is truly hungry,” DeJesus said as he rolled out an awning to protect families from the heavy rain. “If they show up at my window, they are going to be fed.”
On this soggy November morning, 26-year-old Damian Cartmell was picking up 17 meals.
Like others in the canyon, his family was affected by the thick wildfire smoke that blanketed the area for weeks, but they did not lose their home. Relatives weren’t so lucky and lost everything. The two families are now sharing a home in Mill City.
“This is awesome,” Cartmell said. “It’s such a good cause, and the food is really good. It really helps us out a lot. I was surprised.”
As much as Cartmell and hundreds of others have benefited from DeJesus’ unselfishness, DeJesus said it is he who has been blessed to serve others in their time of need.
“This is a great opportunity to provide a cup of water to someone in need in Jesus’ name,” DeJesus said. “It’s also a great opportunity for people to learn that the Salvation Army will do what is required to meet whatever needs our community members have.”
The workload for DeJesus began the day after Labor Day, when Linn County opened an emergency shelter at the Linn County Fair & Expo Center. North Canyon families were besieged by the Beachie Creek and Lionshead fires that grew to 400,000 acres and south Linn County families were affected by the 175,000-acre Holiday Farm Fire.
DeJesus and other volunteers took on the task of preparing three meals a day, plus snacks, for the more than 700 people who spent nearly a week there. He also prepared meals for others sheltered at the Benton County Fairgrounds that were delivered by Red Cross volunteers.
“We had about 20 volunteers per day and we served 550 meals per day,” DeJesus said. “We served about 7,700 meals in all over almost two weeks.”
Linn County Commissioner Will Tucker called DeJesus “one of those heroes you might not see, but he fills so many gaps in our communities. He took over orchestrating meals at the fairgrounds and made sure donated food items were handled in a COVID-safe way.”
Tucker said DeJesus worked seamlessly with Linn-Benton Community College culinary arts instructors and students to coordinate meal prep.
“He is a connector and a true servant,” Tucker said. “His work in the canyon is a continued expression of God’s heart inside him, of someone seeing the need, getting support and making things happen. He is an exceptional young man.”
DeJesus works out of a well-equipped mobile canteen provided by the Oregon Salvation Army’s Cascade Divisional headquarters in Happy Valley. It features a six-burner range, griddle, full oven, heating cabinet, sink, running water, stainless steel countertops and storage.
Each day, DeJesus rises long before sunup, loads the kitchen with supplies and makes the hourlong drive into the canyon.
Although they don’t know it, the families who show up for meals have become a part of his extended congregation.
“I get to know them, their needs,” DeJesus said. “I worry if they don’t show up.”
Meals are basic, but hearty. Breakfast this day includes scrambled eggs, sausages and hashbrowns.
DeJesus tosses salt, pepper and ketchup packets as well as utensils in the boxes.
He also hands out sack lunches with sandwiches, fruit and a sweet treat or two. Supper might include barbecue chicken or pork loin and vegetables.
In all, he will deliver around 500 meals per day.
After his morning stops in Lyons and Mill City, DeJesus heads back to Albany, where he picks up fresh water and dumps gray water. He also reloads the kitchen with evening meals and takes care of any needed vehicle maintenance.
And then he heads back up the canyon, stopping in Lyons from 4:15 to 5:45 p.m. and Mill City from 6:45 to 7:45 p.m.
He won’t get home until 9 or 10 at night.
DeJesus said his mission would not be possible without the support of his wife, Dawn, who also is a Salvation Army lieutenant. Their work is supported by many at the Salvation Army-Albany Corps.
“It is both Dawn and I who lead this effort,” DeJesus said. “Had my wife not held down the fort of the Salvation Army-Albany Corps community and our home, I would not be able to staff this mobile canteen for 15 to 18 hours per day.”
The couple has three young children, and DeJesus admits he is missing family time — his children are ages 9, 3 and 9 months — as well as time with his Salvation Army congregation.
The family has lived in Albany since 2018.
DeJesus said funds from the Salvation Army’s red kettles help fund the meal program, as do proceeds from a T-shirt program sponsored by Arthur and Crystal Meeker, owners of Xtreme Grafx.
DeJesus works at a fever pitch, filling containers as quickly as possible so families don’t have to stand in the rain any longer than necessary. As beads of sweat form on his forehead, DeJesus talks with all who show up.
“How are you today? Is everyone OK?,” DeJesus asks a young man who is picking up several meals.
“Hey, do you need some water?” he queries and adds, “I’ve got three Gatorades. How about them? See, just right for you guys.”
And so the banter goes on as DeJesus serves his new flock.
DeJesus said he has been surprised by how gracious families have been.
“I really enjoy getting to know these people,” DeJesus said. “I pray for them and get to know them a little more every day. It is also gratifying to watch people pick up meals and take them to elderly families that can’t come to us.”
DeJesus plans to deliver meals on Thanksgiving as well.
He said that at the fairgrounds, “I merely equipped the right people to make a solid team.” He said Heather Carmichael of the Grove Church pulled together 20 volunteers per day to make things happen.
“I worked with the LBCC culinary students and their instructors Chef Green and Chef Manning at the fairgrounds, and here we are partnering with the Lyons Fire District and Mari-Linn School,” DeJesus said. “I have people on my phone’s speed dial who will pick up now that they know me, and they are generous partners.”
In addition to meeting families’ nutritional needs, DeJesus said he is trained to provide emotional support so he can also assist those who have spiritual needs during this crisis.
DeJesus said he grew up in an abusive home and the Salvation Army’s music program was a vital key in keeping him on a straight path that included a stint in the Navy.
DeJesus refuses to take a bow for his dedication, saying he is merely doing the Lord’s work, supported by the Salvation Army and his wife.
“This work fulfills what I signed up for,” DeJesus said. “This is my purpose, to feed the hungry and clothe the naked. Sure, I get tired. We all get tired.”
Beginning Monday, DeJesus’ life will get back to normal.
The Salvation Army’s Ray and Joan Kroc Corps Community Center in Salem is going to take over the mobile canteen program in the canyon.
