When Barb King’s term as president of the LCS Board came to an end, she volunteered to assist as a non-voting member to ease the transition to new leadership. Now as the transitional year draws to a close, we sat down with Barb to talk about her time on the LCS board, and her experiences with the organization.

• How did you first get involved with LCS?

I first heard about LCS through a friend who invited me to the Walk/Run. It really piqued my interest to hear about a service forward organization.

My father was a minister at Luther Place Memorial in Washington DC. He served his community with integrity, even when times were hard. Hearing about LCS, I felt an instant connection, it felt like home. And I’ve been involved with the organization ever since, over 20 years.

• What is your favorite memory at LCS?

When I got the call at the start of COVID. I know for a lot of people that was a scary time, and we weren’t sure what was going to happen. When it became clear that the shutdowns were going to be widespread, I knew we were going to have to view the situation from a lot of angles.

I was Vice President at the time, and when Rob Gurnee asked me what I thought we should do, I said that we should lean in. The shutdowns were going to vastly expand the need for our programs. We should embrace our mission and be there when we are needed most and provide for our clients.

Rob agreed but also acknowledged the challenge of adjustment, the need to work from home, and the need to keep staff as safe as possible.

And I said, ‘We’ll figure it out.’

• What moment are you most proud of?

During COVID, we got a call from DEHAP (Delaware Housing Assistance Program). They were overwhelmed by the influx of those who lost their income in the face of the pandemic. LCS has a team dedicated to Housing Stability, but they couldn’t be everywhere at once. So I, along with a few other volunteers, stepped up to fill the need.

We trained with the Housing Stability team and learned how to process cases. All remotely over Zoom, we met the need and helped our clients stay in their homes.

Finding opportunities to help our community in an organized way is the core of LCS. No one can do everything alone, and I am just so grateful for all the support for our fabulous clients. I hear stories about it all the time and it’s so uplifting. Those are the good parts of the kingdom

• What do you see next for LCS?

I don’t know! But I know it will be fabulous. Every group has brought new ideas, new energies to LCS. And I’m super excited to see where it goes.

There’s been so much groundwork for the expansion and deepening of our services. At the last Room at the Table, I said that LCS was like a rocket on a launch pad.

And now, we are launching. Whatever we do next, it will be wonderful.

• What would you say to a new board member, staff member or volunteer at LCS?

You will get more than you give. You will be inspired, and your life will never be the same.

Follow what you know to be right. Keep pushing because together, we can and have achieved amazing things you never knew you could.

• Note from the Author:

When I first started at LCS a little over five years ago, I was introduced to about 3 dozen board members, volunteers, and staff. I was more than a little overwhelmed with it all, I figured I would meet my new team and slowly get to know them over a few months.

What I didn’t expect was the welcome I received from Barb King.

She cared about who I was, why I was there, and what I wanted. Not in an abstract sense, but genuine care about the people around her. To be honest, it threw me a bit.  In my experience, someone being that nice is usually not being sincere. Barb quickly proved me wrong with her consistently warm and welcoming presence.

I am continually blown away by her commitment to keeping LCS moving forward, tied to this kindness and desire to serve her community. She has been instrumental in our fundraising efforts with the Room at the Table Breakfast and the Golf Outing.

Her leadership over COVID was also amazing to watch. She always looked for opportunities for the board to assist LCS Staff with providing emergency assistance. Her leadership during our DEHAP remote assistance was inspirational, having a group of previously untrained volunteers helping to distribute relief funds.

It has been a pleasure working with her during her term on the board, and I can’t thank her enough for all she’s done!