Career Day Presentation

So a few weekends ago I spoke about Writing as a Career to K-12 kids.... and it was awesome!

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Inner City Tutoring

Since we moved around three times in the last year-and-a-half (and my travel schedule was insane), I had a difficult time committing to volunteering last year. So now that we're settled in the city, one of my personal challenges is to get back into volunteer work. Recently I contacted Hope for New York and was linked up with an organization called Operation Exodus. Here's how my first day of tutoring went...

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Big Pig Video

Alright folks.... Here's the video I promised of our visit with a colossal, adoptable farm pig at the Hunterdon County New Jersey SPCA! The voices you hear in the background are 1) my brother 2) my nieces and 3) the SPCA volunteer.....

P.S. I heard an unconfirmed report that this pig actually fell off the back of a meat truck. This individual said she was then found on the side of the highway and taken to the SPCA. Um.... that must have been quite the feat, because this little lady weighs almost 1,000 pounds.

Did you know that I had a pet piggy when I was a kid? Here's my story (with vintage pics!) on the National Geographic Inside WILD blog.

Trips that Cultivate a New Perspective

Travel & Leisure recently posted an article entitled 15 Life-Changing Trips. It got me to thinking about the places I've been, experiences I've had, people I've met and things I've learned. There are a few trips I would call personally "life changing"..... One being a five-day road trip that Bobby and I took along the California coast from San Francisco to San Diego.... a few pictures, below.

 

  

 

My friends and family know how much I love volunteering, and I've always wanted to tie together both helping the community and seeing the world with a transformative VolunTourism trip. My brother has gone to India a few times, volunteering at Mother Teresa's organization called "Sisters of Charity," and I would love to join him in 2011 if I can swing it. And my little sister and I have talked about spending a weekend helping out in New Orleans. So, a personal goal of mine is to make a volunteering vacation happen in the near future, and I suspect this will be a "life-changing trip."

What are some of your life-changing trips?

Check out the T & L article for some vacation-planning inspiration.

* © passport in my pocket *

Volunteer Day at the Community Food Bank of New Jersey

Today my husband and I spent the afternoon helping out at the Community FoodBank of New Jersey. This facility is located in a 280,000 square-foot warehouse in Hillside, New Jersey. Each year, the FoodBank distributes over 23 million pounds of food and groceries to about 1,700 non-profit organizations. 

Hunger in America 2010 Statistic Results:

- An estimated 830,200 people annually receive emergency food assistance – 138,500 in any given week.

- 42% of the members of households in New Jersey receiving food assistance are children under 18 years old.

- 72% had incomes below the federal poverty level (income of $22,050 per year) during the previous month.

- 48% had to choose between paying for food and paying their rent/mortgage.

Read more Hunger in America facts here.

 At the Community FoodBank of New Jersey in Hillside, donated goods arrive in this warehouse and go through an initial round of quality control. 

 Products that pass the first inspection are organized and merchandised by type, brand, etc in this "shopping area." Goods that appear faulty are removed at this time. Non-profits (such as soup kitchens and senior feeding programs) send over a "wish list" on an order form. Volunteers then shop and bag their desired products. The three facilities of this single FoodBank organization serve 18 of the 21 counties in New Jersey.

 

  

This is Bob, a frequent volunteer at the FoodBank. He rotates, merchandises and stocks the products found in the shopping area.

Below is a machine that our coordinator, Faye, calls the "Digester." The FoodBank received it through a grant award last year, and its primary function is to limit waste at the facility. Foods – like out-of-code sausages or aged carrots – are placed inside this machine. Then, it "digests" the food into a clear liquid that can easily and safely pass through the Newark/Hillside plumbing system.

In addition to the FoodBank, the Community Food Bank of New Jersey offers multiple programs to help fight hunger and poverty. Below is a view of the Kid's Closet. All of these clothes are brand-new and free of charge (some labels include Ralph Lauren, a frequent clothing store donor). Partnering agencies request items for their sponsored children twice a year. During this time, volunteers gather 3-5 outfits to send these children. During the colder months, all of these children receive a warm winter coat.

Another program in the Kid's Division is Tools 4 Schools, a free classroom supply store for teachers who work at one of 170 participating schools (like Newark, Paterson and Jersey City districts).

 

This is the 9/11 Remembrance Wall at the FoodBank. It's an emotional experience to look through the letters and drawings made by local children.

After our initial facility tour, Faye had planned for us to help sort breads – perishable goods that are still in good condition are recycled into animal food products (or, if they fail inspection, sent to the Digester). 

However, by the time we arrived at the FoodBank, the dumpster had been completely filled. So we headed into the warm administration offices of the Community Food Bank of New Jersey to assist with mailings. As a non-profit organization, the FoodBank relies heavily on donations and sends out frequent snail-mail and email newsletters.

Bobby and I made a little assembly line.

We had an educational and uplifting experience today – much thanks to Faye for being a gracious host. It was amazing to see first-hand all of the wonderful things that the Community FoodBank of New Jersey is doing to help others – so inspirational. I hope we are able to make volunteering at the FoodBank a regular part of our routine.

Additional Resources:

Volunteer at the Community Food Bank of New Jesey.

Donate to the Food Bank now.

Volunteer at a Food Bank in your neighborhood.

* © passport in my pocket *