As a regular volunteer at Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services (SFBFS) every week since 2003, it was evident that Margot Abrott had a passion for helping those less fortunate. However, she did it in a quiet way, never boasting about her kind acts. Service was just a part of who she was. Margot passed away in March 2012 and is greatly missed by her fellow volunteers as well as SFBFS staff and clients.

Margot could be found every Tuesday at the front desk of the Clothing program, greeting every single shopper that walked through the door and logging their information in the computer system. She came to know regular shoppers and worried about them when they weren’t seen for a few months. The shoppers got to know her, too, and would ask about her if she was absent. She enjoyed getting to know the clients and would see to it that someone in great need was taken good care of and found the items they needed. “Margot was committed to meeting the needs of SFBFS clients,” said Tasha Bryant, Clothing program manager. “She kept sleeping bags, socks, hygiene items, watches and more in the back of her car in case someone was in great need of something specific.”

In addition to her work at SFBFS, Margot performed acts of kindness and generosity all the time. She went out of her way to help homeless individuals she saw on the streets. Robin Simpson, Volunteer Services Manager at SFBFS, recalls Margot sharing her own volunteer t-shirt with a homeless man who was dressed in very tattered clothing. “I remember her admitting to me that she’d given her volunteer shirt away,” said Robin. “She told me that someone needed a new t-shirt a lot more than she did. It didn’t surprise me that Margot had done that, but it made a lasting impact on me.”

Her dedication to service was evident in her choice of careers, which varied from community organizer with the City of Oakland to working for the tour guide program at the California State Capitol. She also volunteered as an emergency loan officer in Oakland after the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. Her other joys in life, according to her fellow volunteers, included dining out – especially brunch before her weekly volunteer work in the Clothing program – and spending time with her grandson.

Margot’s giving personality made a lasting difference in the lives of everyone she met. “She holds a very special place in my heart and the hearts of our clients and her fellow volunteers,” said Tasha. “She will be truly missed.”