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Although her family was from the United States, Joy grew up in Venezuela. She was born and raised in Caracas and attended school in a low-income neighborhood. She and her mother always helped their neighbors. As a teenager she volunteered to help people with disabilities and also worked as a candy striper. She loved it, and always knew that she would make a career of helping others. After graduating from the university she intended to return to Caracas and begin her work in social services but that changed when she found the food bank.
She came to the food bank in 1986, after a short stint at a local radio station doing English to Spanish translation. She was hired to manage Food Plus, a program that provides a special food box to seniors, pregnant and postpartum mothers, and children six and under. Her skills as a Spanish speaker, her long experience doing charity work, and her college degree gave her the edge over numerous applicants. Today she still runs Food Plus in addition to managing the 140,000-square-foot Tucson facility. Over the years Joy has gotten to know many clients and has seen lives transformed by the organization's work.
About ten years ago a local attorney, Ken Haber, volunteered to provide free wills for the staff of the Community Food Bank. Many like Joy decided to participate and chose to include the food bank in their will. "I thought it was an easy way to give to the food bank, and I'd be able to make a larger gift than I could today," said Joy. The food bank is lucky to have so many generous employees like Joy.
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