Discovery Through Service

Today, as we observe both Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples’ Day, we reflect on what it truly means to discover — not new lands, but new ways to see, to understand, and to care.

More than four centuries ago, the Daughters of Charity began a journey not by ship, but by service — bringing food, comfort, and love to those in need. When they arrived in Los Angeles in the 1850s, before the city was even named, they saw the same truth we hold today: that every act of compassion reveals something sacred in our shared humanity.

At St. Vincent Meals on Wheels, a ministry of the Daughters of Charity, that legacy endures. From humble beginnings — a few pots of stew in a church basement — we continue to prepare and deliver food and love to homebound and hungry seniors across Los Angeles County.

Discovery, at its deepest, is not about reaching new worlds. It’s about opening our hearts to the one we already share.