Episode Description The Heart of Laguna – “The Power of Presence: Hunger, Hope, and Human Connection” What if addressing hunger isn’t only about food—but about restoring dignity, belonging, and hope?
In this deeply moving episode of
The Heart of Laguna, I sit down with
Maurice Baz, Co-Chair of the Laguna Beach Interfaith Council and Data Project Manager at the Laguna Food Pantry. Maurice brings us inside the quiet, transformational work happening every morning behind the pantry doors—where groceries are shared, but so are stories, courage, and second chances.
From a barefoot boy on the streets of India, to a life-altering family medical crisis in Europe, to a simple jacket placed on a stranger’s shoulders outside the pantry—Maurice traces the moments that forged his calling to serve. Together, we explore hunger not only as a social problem, but as a sacred space for encounter. We talk about presence as a spiritual discipline, volunteering as a form of resistance against division, and Laguna Beach as a microcosm of both beauty and hidden need.
This episode is a powerful invitation: not simply to help, but to
belong—to step into the shared human circle where no one is invisible and everyone matters.
Show Notes Guest: Maurice Baz - Data Project Manager, Laguna Beach Food Pantry
- Co-Chair, Laguna Beach Interfaith Council
- Volunteer, humanitarian, technologist, and lifelong advocate for inclusive community service
- Background in machine learning, physics education, disability advocacy, and global volunteer work
In This Episode, We Explore: 1. A Life Formed by Service Across the World- Growing up across cultures—from Washington, DC to London and the Middle East
- Early volunteer work in Lebanon, Colombia, and the UK
- Music, disability, and the neurological power of human connection
- From machine learning engineer to grassroots community servant
2. Five Defining Moments that Shaped a Calling- India, age 7: Witnessing joy and dignity in profound poverty
- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: Learning to hold “infinite hope” amid finite disappointment
- A mother’s catastrophic injury: Learning that dignity is not lost in suffering
- The Fundamental Attribution Error: Why we misjudge people in hardship
- A winter morning at the pantry: A stranger gives his jacket to a homeless man—no words exchanged
Each story reveals the same truth:
“Service isn’t about fixing people. It’s about walking beside them.”3. The Laguna Beach Food Pantry: More Than a Food Program- Founded after the 1993 Laguna fires
- Grew from serving 80 families per day pre-COVID to nearly 290 families per day today
- Supported by 28 grocery partners through California’s SB1383 food recovery law
- Backed by 200 active volunteers
Who the Pantry Serves:- Working families
- Seniors on fixed incomes
- Hospitality workers
- School bus drivers
- Single parents
- People living in their cars
Distribution: 🕗 Monday–Friday | 8:00–10:30 AM
🌐 www.lagunafoodpantry.org
🔗 Resource Guide:
bit.ly/ocresources4. Hunger as a Doorway to Human Encounter- Hunger as quiet trauma—not just empty stomachs
- Why behavior often hides unseen pain
- How a simple “How are you really doing?” changes everything
- The pantry as a place where:
- Guests become volunteers
- Volunteers become neighbors
- Receiving help becomes an act of courage
- Offering help becomes an act of respect
5. Volunteering as a Spiritual & Moral Practice- Service as presence—not performance
- Volunteering as a reset for the human soul
- One hour can change:
- How you see others
- How you see yourself
- How you see your city
“We don’t need to save the world. We need to touch it.”
6. Laguna Beach: Beauty, Disparity, and Shared Responsibility- Extreme wealth and hidden hunger existing side by side
- Housing as both an economic and emotional crisis
- The grief of displacement
- The danger of invisibility in a thriving city
- Why the “other” is always already part of “us”
7. The Interfaith Council: Where Faith Becomes Action- Leaders from churches, synagogues, Baha’i community, shelter services, and nonprofits
- Monthly gatherings grounded in prayer and real-world needs
- Support for:
- Cold weather shelters
- Friendship Shelter day services
- Pantry distribution
- Youth unhoused outreach
“It’s the only room where you hear ‘Amen,’ ‘Baruch Adonai,’ and ‘Do we have enough folding chairs?’ in the same minute.”
Signs of Hope & Resilience- A man at the pantry saying quietly: “I’m trying again.”
- A daily walk to the ocean as an act of defiance against despair
- Neighbors donating “extra” produce without needing recognition
- The quiet persistence of people choosing to begin again
Key Invitation from This Episode If you do one thing this week:
- Volunteer one hour
- Go somewhere unfamiliar
- Stand beside someone you don’t usually meet
- Let yourself be changed by presence—not politics
- Practice listening without solving
That’s how communities heal.
About the Show The Heart of Laguna is a weekly conversation from KXFM in Laguna Beach. Each episode explores what holds us together when the world feels like it’s coming apart—through stories, spirit, and service from the soul of the city.🎙 New episodes every Wednesday morning on KXFM at 8:00. I
About the Show The Heart of Laguna is a weekly conversation from KXFM in Laguna Beach. Each episode explores what holds us together when the world feels like it’s coming apart—through stories, spirit, and service from the soul of the city.🎙 New episodes every Wednesday morning on KXFM at 8:00.
