Day 312: Hunger For Hope

Thanksgiving is just around the corner which means one thing for most people. Food. However, there are those that are not as fortunate as others. Some will be grateful to just have something to eat for the day. Luckily, there are always ways to give back and provide food for others.

                                          

This afternoon at Albertson's there was this can sitting by the register. Just like it says, spare change could help to feed a family this upcoming holiday season. It is amazing how far a little change can go. Keep your eyes open for opportunities to give back this holiday season! I am sure there are plenty chances out there

God bless,

Kailee 

Day 248: Wore Orange For Hunger

This month people are going orange. Food banks are hoping to spark interest and spread awareness by wearing orange. The goal is to get more people to donate to local food banks and volunteer. Now, they need food more than ever. People tend to think that food banks only need food in the winter months, when really they receive the most during those months. Orange is the color because it represents the color of harvest.

One in six Americans and one in four children are at a loss for food. Those statistics startled me, so today, I simply wore orange and told others why. You can participate too! It is taking place all month long. Also, you can donate to the local food banks listed below. I plan on it!

• Second Harvest Food Bank
• 810 E. Chemical Dr. Kennewick WA
• Tri-Cities Food Bank of Kennewick
• 424 W. Deschutes Ave Kennewick WA
• St. Vincent De Paul Food Bank
• 115 W. Lewis St Pasco WA
• Golden Age Share
• 504 S Oregon Ave Pasco WA
• Tri-Cities Food Banks
• 321 Wellsian Way Richland WA

Day 133: Fill a Bag, Feed Families

In the mail a few days ago, I received a notecard that read National Association of Letter Carriers- Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive. The note asked members of the community to fill a grocery bag with non-perishable food items and return it to the mail box by a certain day. The mail carriers then pick up the bags and take them to post office to be combined with other neighborhoods. My mom and I filled a bag of cans and dropped it off at the mailbox!

Apparently, this is the 21st Stamp Out Hunger Food Drive! The National Association of Letter Carriers run this event each year. You can learn more about the food drive and look for next year's Stamp Out Hunger date by clicking here.

God bless,

Kailee

Day 119: Feed Cheney

This evening I was able to take part in a very cool experience here in Cheney. I have been wanting to get involved with a club at Eastern called Circle K International (college version of Kiwanis) for the longest time and finally found time today. Basically, this club looks for community service opportunities. We took a trip down to the Cheney Community Center, where they serve meals for those in the community in need. In addition, attached to the community center is also a clothing donation bank which is open late on Feed Cheney days so those who eat can also shop.

After talking to a woman who helps organize these dinners, she explained that:

• Feed Cheney on average feeds 80-100 people
• Groceries are also available from Second Harvest
• Feed Cheney is a monthly event, happening the last Monday of the month
• The different courses are prepared by different groups and organizations like Second Harvest and a local church.
• Volunteers are a huge blessing and make this dinner possible.

The rest of the group and I were asked to clean off tables and put away the tables and chairs. During my time cleaning, I was able to talk to other volunteers and learn a lot more about the program. In general, I was able to have a good time and meet some very nice people. I gave the lady in charge my contact information, so hopefully I will be able to come back help and help in the future. 

It is amazing that you live somewhere and be so unaware of the opportunities that await you until you go looking for them. Open your eyes, start looking because I promise you won't regret it! 

God bless,

Kailee 

Day 109: Grilled Cheese Feed for Campfire USA

This afternoon Tiff and I swung by the Gamma Phi house to enjoy grilled cheese with the g phi b's. Gamma Phi is a sorority on campus and which philanthropic events focus on Camp Fire USAand Girls On The Run. Today, specifically, the donations from the grilled cheese feed will benefit a local Camp Fire camp. The girls who were working brought us grilled cheese and our soup of choice. To boot, the house was decorated so adorably. When Tiff and I were there, there were several other tables of people chowing down on their scrumptious soups and sandwiches, meaning the event looked to be quite successful. I hope our sorority was able to raise a good amount for Camp Fire!

Camp Fire, I have recently learned is so much more up my alley than I could have ever imagined. This is a summer camp that offers several different camp courses, such as learning more about the environment or leadership. The leadership camp immediately caught my eye and I did some extra research. The promise of Camp Fire is as follows:

If you visit the Camp Fire website, you can find a list of all of the camps offered in all 50 states. You too can get involved in donating to your school's Gamma Phi Beta sorority, donate online, volunteer or even be a camp counselor. Today's youth are our leaders and they need good role models to light the way, just like the G Phi girls. 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 93: Donated PB&J

Did you know that peanut butter is the number one requested item in food banks? Either had I until the other day. The Do Something Foundation is currently running a campaign which asks participants to donate peanut butter to local food banks. Why peanut butter? According to the website, peanut butter is in high demand because it is packed with protein, it has a long shelf life (2 years) and it fits in food restrictions. Not to mention, it is delicious!

Well, once I acquired this information, I ran to the store and bought some peanut butter and jelly. I Google searched local food banks and found that their was a donation location in Cheney. This was right next door to a clothing donation location. I thought that was pretty cool and gave me a new resource for the future. Hey, you learn something new everyday! The lady at the store was very, very sweet and grateful for the donations.
    

Again, if you would like to donate something to your local food bank, I would double check donation times. There is not always someone to collect donations.

God Bless,

Kailee

Day 92: Provided A Meal For A Child

I was shopping today and found a bottle of ketchup- of all things- that caught my attention. On the bottle was a message that read "enter one code to donate one meal to Feeding America." Intrigued, I looked on the back where there surely wasa code to enter.  After reading a little more about it, I remembered a while back seeing a commercial about this and an array of other foods which donate meals to children's hunger. Other products include Pam, Orville Redenbachers, Snack Pack, and Chef Boyardee. Knowing that I could support a hungry child and that the girls and I use ketchup quite often, I couldn't help but buy the bottle. (What I should have done is taken a picture of all of the bottles and entered all of the codes ;D! )

When you enter a code to Child Hunger Ends here, ConAgra foods will donate 12.5 cents to Feeding America, which is apparently all it takes to provide a child in hunger. Now, I am going to look for other ConAgra foods that I own that may also contain a code for donating. I encourage you to do the same! Every 1 in 5 children in the U.S. don't know where their next meal is going to come from. In Spokane alone the food insecurity rate is 15.5%. Over 1.5 million people in Washington state are food insecure. Can you provide one child with their next meal?

*As in added bonus the Chid Hunger Ends Here website has two free downloadable songs that are beautiful and inspiring! Check them out!

God Bless,

Kailee

Day 75: Donated to Hope House

This quarter I took a course called Community, Communication and Citizenship. In the course we were asked to complete 20 hours of service learning at several different local organizations. They included Boys and Girls Club, West Central Community Center, Hope House, Women's Hearth and Cheney Assisted Living. The point behind the service learning is pretty self-explantory, meaning that we would learn by being of service to the organizations. At the end of the quarter, each group of students was asked to make a video. You can see my and Rebekah's video on West Central Community Center by clicking here. This last week, each group presented their videos for the class to see. All of the videos were incredible, but there was one in particular that stuck out to me.

Women's Hearth is place where women can take refuge throughout the day. Then the women usually trek over to Hope House for shelter from the cold evenings. Each women receives food, a warm shower, clean and dry clothes, a warm bed, hygiene items and resource information. In the group's video for the two organizations, one of the employees expressed their need for hygiene products and food, especially during the spring and summer months. She mentioned that they receive most of their donations during the winter months (which is appreciated), but they need donations now too.

Acquiring this information and knowing I would be downtown this morning, I dropped off several cans of food and a few things of deodorant. It was not a lot, but that will help make a dent in providing supplies to over 1,800 homeless women in Spokane. If you would like to donate to either location, I would suggest calling ahead because there is not always someone there to accept donations. Here is the Hope House website. For your information, they are directly affiliated with Volunteers of America. 

God bless,

Kailee