After two postponements, the latest due to Saturday’s steady rain, we were finally able to do our 15th outreach this Sunday. We woke up to clear skies and sunshine. After a hearty breakfast, we started organizing for the day ahead. As it turned out, my husband Beau was on call for work all weekend and had to bring his pager along with him. Consequently, he ended up spending some of the outreach time sitting in the car on the phone dealing with work issues, while I held down the fort so to speak! We packed up the car with a rack full worth of clothing, shoes, socks, toiletries, table, rack, etc. we prepared almost 60 cups of coffee in the urn, packed the cream, milk, and sugar, as well as some treats. Our dear neighbor and friend Sharon kindly baked a large bunch of mini pumpkin muffins for us to bring along with us. She packaged them individually with two muffins per pack, and there we 48 packs in total.
We also had 30 granola bars to bring, thanks to my best friend Sue. Thank you both so much for your kindness.
We left for downtown at 10:15 AM and arrived in front of the Salvation Army at 10:30 AM. We immediately set up the table for coffee, put out the muffins and granola bars, then put the rack together and hung up all the clothing. In no time a crowd had gathered, and we could already tell that today was going to be a great day! Everyone really enjoyed the freshly-baked muffins and voiced their appreciation. Many wanted us to thank Sharon personally for her kindness and to tell her how yummy the muffins were. Many of the fellows tucked a granola bar in their pocket for a little something to eat later on.
We also ended up having a great chat with a long-serving military veteran, who along with a group of soldiers in uniform, was volunteering for SHS (Soldiers Helping Soldiers). They do outreach work once every 3 Sundays. Although they will help anyone in need, their main focus is to identify and help homeless veterans who may have fallen through the cracks to access the services and benefits that they are entitled to. What a great service these volunteers provide!
Within an hour or so, all of the muffins, granola bars and coffee were gone, and only a few lonely items were left on the rack! At noon, with big smiles on our faces and a warm glow in our hearts, we packed up the car and headed back home. What a successful outreach we had!
We want to thank each and every one of you for any and all donations. Without all of you, we couldn’t do what we do!