Food Banks, Soup Kitchens, and Trash…

Jeremiah Otis

Posted on Sep 19, 2007

Food Banks, Soup Kitchens, and Trash Pick-up...Sound Like Fun?

So, several of us got together tonight and met to continue talking about some ways that we can be the hands and feet of Jesus in our community.

It was a small group, but we actually accomplished quite a bit!

Here are some of the opportunities we discovered:

We will be picking up trash at the Fair next week. This is going to be a very loosely structured system. Basically, all we are going to do is pick up trash while we are there. We won't be going as a big group, we won't be wearing t-shirts or anything else to identify ourselves, and we won't have a schedule. If you are interested in participating, all you have to do is pick up any trash you see on the ground and throw it in the nearest waste receptacle. You can do this while you are hanging out with friends. The primary point is relationships, the secondary goal is to help out those that have to clean up after the Fair, and the third goal is to become a little bit more responsible for the world God has given us. And, since we will be with friends while we do this, we might just become an inspiration to our friends to pick up some trash. If you plan on helping out, leave a comment. It would be great to see who all is interested!

The Auburn Presbyterian Church on 12th Street (big beautiful church right across from the library), has a soup kitchen on Monday's. It's called Friend's Table Mission, and they serve lunch from 11 am - 12:30 pm, Monday's only. They feed an average of 120 people every Monday. They could use some help, particularly during the winter, when some of their volunteers go to Florida. Also, if you have any dried goods, like diapers or such, they could certainly use them to hand out to those in need. I will be volunteering on most Monday's, starting Oct. 8. If you are interested in getting involved, shoot me an email at jeremiah@jeremiahotis.com and I will get you connected with the people you need to talk to, or just meet me at the Auburn Presbyterian Church on Oct. 8 at 10 am.

Newschannel 15 sponsors a winter coat drive every winter, and the drop-off/pick-up location in Auburn is RSVP, across from the Main Street YMCA. They are in desperate need of children's coats and 2XL, 3XL, 4XL and 5XL coats. If you have any of these sizes, or know anyone who has any of these sizes, and would be interested in donating them, you can email me at jeremiah@jeremiahotis.com and I will get you in touch with the right people. They also need help getting the coats out of storage, and then putting them into storage after winter.

The RSVP office in Auburn is also the home of the DeKalb County Food Bank. They need help unloading things throughout the week. The Walmart Distribution Center provides them with tons of food, but they have to pick it up and load it and unload it themselves. They get about an hours notice when food comes in, so they need help on fairly short notice, but if we can put together a call chain of people who are interested in helping, and might be available, that would be a huge help to them! Again, shoot me an email if you are interested, jeremiah@jeremiahotis.com.

The Food Bank is also in need of people to work with clients. However, if you would like to do that, you will need to fill out an application, and undergo a criminal history check with the police. This is for everyone's safety. They are open three days a week, and I will get the times posted shortly.

The Food Bank also needs help cleaning the facility. In the winter, they get a lot of tracked in mud and snow, and they need help mopping the floors. It's usually once a week, and if we take a crew of people, we should be able to get it knocked out in short order.

We have researching several other avenues where we hope to get involved, and as those doors open, I will put them online. If you are interested in helping in any of the above areas, feel free to leave a comment (this might encourage others to step out as well), or shoot me an email at jeremiah@jeremiahotis.com, and I'll get you more info! Also, if you know of any other opportunities in the Auburn area, let me know and we'll get the info out there for everyone!

Comments

September 19, 2007, Kelly schreibt: Joe,
If folks really want to help out, and aren't sure how to get invoved, they can always contact their local United Way. (No, I'm not just saying that because I'm working for them) A quick spiel about what they do: The money that they raise with their campaign/donations goes to different agencies throughout the county. Agencies (in DeKalb County anyway) such as RSVP/Food bank, St. Martin's Health Clinic which offers free healthcare to low-income families, Big Brothers Big Sisters, several daycares, DeKalb County Council on Aging, and DeKalb Council on Pregnancy, just to name a few. There is a board of directors in place that decide where the funds will be sent, and all agencies are held to the highest accountability. There are a lot of good programs that United Way is not involved in, but if someone wants to know where they can volunteer and doesn't know how to begin, United Way is a good place to start. My two cents.
September 19, 2007, joe schreibt: Kelly that's awesome!

I know that United Way has been involved with several of the places we've talked to, but it never occurred to me to go to United Way and actually talk to them. I don't know what I was thinking!

I will head over there and talk to them as soon as I can, which may be next week, and I'll post what I find out.

Is there someone specific to ask for, or can we just stop in and talk to anyone in the office?
September 19, 2007, Kelly schreibt: Marcy or Amanda either one can help you. They're actually the only 2 people that work for United Way of DeKalb County. (other than me, but I'm just here 'til November!) They would be more than happy to talk to you.
September 19, 2007, Tara Lilly schreibt: Joe-
Our family will be particpating in the trash pick-up effort whenever we are at the fair next week! I'm also looking to do some of the other things that you mentioned in this blog. I will contact you directly! Would love to have some ideas of some things that my kids can be involved in so they can see this process! Love ya-and miss you too!
September 19, 2007, joe schreibt: Tara, Glad to know you're interested!!!!

I've been getting together with several people, and the one thing we have in common is that we want to reach out to people, but we feel as though we are the only ones. By sharing our stories, and taking proactive steps, we are encouraging each other, and finding lots of other people who feel the same way!

And, I'm SUPER EXCITED that you want to get your kids involved!

Let me know what you have in mind (shoot me an email at jeremiah@jeremiahotis.com ) and we'll figure out how to make it happen. Just be warned, any ideas we come up with might just end up on this blog for the world to see, they might be an encouragement to someone else.