SPONSORED — She is the Soup Lady to the first responders.

She takes care of the folks who take care of everyone else: firefighters, police investigators, SWAT teams, search and rescue teams. And she is a recent recipient of the Hometown Heroes award presented by KIRO radio in partnership with WSECU. These awards highlight the efforts of local, everyday heroes — heroes like Ginger Passarelli.

A quick internet search will reveal countless stories about Ginger “Mama” Passarelli and her growing band of angels to the first responders. Recently, she fed the firefighters by her home near Chelan, Washington. The Wenatchee wildfires took out 29 homes and 3,000 acres. To the firefighters and search and rescue teams, she and her soup ladies were a godsend. Exhausted, they were able to take a few moments to eat a made-with-love meal to recharge their batteries.

For more insight, she consented to a Q&A. Her love for humanity feels like a warm, fuzzy blanket — the kind of blanket she carries in her car, along with teddy bears and boxes of tissues — just in case. The reason? Because no one knows when they might stumble upon a situation where they can help.

Below is an excerpt of the chat:

Tell me about your calling and how that happened?

Ginger Passarelli: I was at church one day and the pastor asked me to bring in soup for some people. I did. Then, after [Hurricane] Katrina, the pastor was asking for volunteers to go down and help. I turned to my husband and didn’t have to say a word. “Go ahead. Take care of them.” When I got there, I discovered that there were lots of stations that took care of the victims, but no one could enter the restricted areas where the first responders were engaged in saving lives. They would work incredibly long shifts with little to eat. I couldn’t stand by and do nothing. So I found a guy that had a grill set up on the beach and was cooking up burgers for them and handing them over the line.

All of the volunteers were sleeping in a 3,000-square-foot warehouse. At 3 a.m., the next morning, someone came in and said, “Mama, can you come help?” So I was able to team up with the grill guy and we got about 8-10 more volunteers. I called my husband and asked him to transfer some money from savings into checking. He asked “How much?” I told him, “A lot.”

Our sanitary station was a cooler of ice with a spigot. Everyone washed and put on gloves and we served 800-1,000 meals a day. Hot meals. Real food.

What is the farthest you’ve ever traveled?

GP: New York for Hurricane Sandy; Louisiana after Katrina; Missouri, Oklahoma, California for forest fires and mudslides. Mainly, we stay in the three-county area around Black Diamond on the Puget Sound: Pierce, King and Snohomish counties.

What is the most you’ve fed?

GP: After Katrina we were serving about 3,500 meals a day out of tent. In Oklahoma, we served 13,000 in five days.

What has been your most heart-wrenching experience?

GP: There was once a situation where a family of six (grandmother, grandfather, son and daughter-in-law and two children, 3 and 5) was murdered on Christmas Eve. They discovered bodies the day after Christmas. When I went with my crew to help, I found out that they were a family that frequented my restaurant, Mama Passarelli’s. The little girl, Olivia, used to come in a say, “Mama, you want to see me twirl?” and she would twirl for me. I actually have a picture she colored for me. That was very difficult and resulted in PTSD. But from that experience, I went on to get my license as a chaplain, so I can cope and spiritually feed those first responders as well as give them hot meals. Now five or six of my soup ladies are also chaplains.

What has been your most heart-warming experience? Do you keep in touch with those you have helped? Or do they keep in touch with you?

GP: Once an ice cave collapsed. Two teenage boys were in it and were airlifted out to Harborview Hospital. The mom of one wanted to come to restaurant to thank me. The boys had suffered broken backs and broken ankles, and when they were well enough, they all came in and I was able to talk to them and their moms. It was such an honor to meet them. Other than that, I rarely get to know or speak to victims.

How many helper heroes do you have in your growing band?

GP: We have about 45 now.

Would you consider training helpers in other cities to do what you do?

GP: In a heartbeat. We are currently writing a procedural handbook. There is a lot of training, even on a federal level, that goes in to doing this kind of volunteer work.

This angelic “Soup Lady” said people are always telling her they’d love to do something to help others. Her delightfully frank and pithy response to this statement: “Then, get off your butt and do something.”