DeAnn Servos likes to think she’s “riding on God’s coattails.” As a wife, mother and the executive director of Prodisee Pantry in Spanish Fort, Ala., she’s the first to tell you she depends on God a lot.
Busy hardly begins to sum up Servos’ life since her family moved to Spanish Fort in 2000. “We are not people who sit still,” she says. “We’d like to, but we never do.” The Servos children, ages 18, 16 and 14, are involved in several activities that keep the family schedule packed.
Servos, who’s originally from Pennsylvania, and her husband, an engineer, moved around from state to state in the early part of their marriage. They’ve lived in Louisiana, New Jersey and Delaware, but have been in Spanish Fort the longest. “We’ve decided we’re going to stay. This is what my children know best, and I’ve found my calling,” she says.
A few years after the family relocated to Baldwin County, Servos had the opportunity to work with an up-and-coming Prodisee Pantry, a non-profit emergency food bank and disaster relief organization. It was a small program until Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast. That same year, 2005, Servos became the pantry’s director, and as she puts it, “we’ve never looked back.”
Prodisee Pantry serves about 1,000 families per month with much more than just food. In its 11 years, the pantry has expanded to include referral services for everything from legal counseling to mental health. The pantry also serves as Baldwin County’s primary emergency response agency following major weather events.
Servos says her work with Prodisee Pantry doesn’t feel like a job. “I don’t count the number of hours I work, because this is a blessing to me.” Eventually, though, she believes God will bring along the right person to take her place so she can enjoy some retirement years.
Even though Servos considers herself a people person, she does like to occasionally get away and find some quiet time, usually made possible by a trip to the beach.
The demands of running a large non-profit organization and managing the needs of a busy family might seem like more than one person can handle. But Servos says somehow, “God always makes it possible.”