What is that?

Potatoes.

A tangible, staple food, potatoes are the theme of a lot of what House of Friendship does each January and February.  It’s the time of the Potato Blitz, and potatoes serve as a focal point for a lot of cooperation and hard work, much like Turkeys and Christmas Hampers are, during November and December.

Someone standing in the lineup waiting for an Emergency Food Hamper will need potatoes.  A resident of the Men’s Hostel, or our residential addiction treatment programs will look forward to them as a part of the meals that staff prepare.  Potatoes are a symbol of the many food needs that we meet as we walk with people through their moment of crisis.

How does the Blitz succeed?  With a great community.  Nothing says this more than the Don Cameron Potato Night (previous blog coverage here and here).

For fifteen years Don Cameron, a.k.a. the voice of the Kitchener Rangers, has led the call to help feed our neighbours in need, as the ‘Coach’ of ‘Team Blitz’ for House of Friendship’s  annual February Potato Blitz.  The Potato Blitz aims to collect enough potatoes to provide food assistance for an entire year. This year, Team Blitz announced a new, higher goal of 200,000 pounds of potatoes!

Are you attending the game tonight?  Bring a bag of spuds or a cash donation and make a difference to someone in your community.

To help get things started, Zehrs Markets was pleased to present a cheque for $5,000 to House of Friendship in honour of the 15th annual Don Cameron Potato Night. In addition, Zehrs Markets will donate an amount of potatoes equivalent to the total number of potatoes brought to the game by Rangers fans, and local Zehrs Markets managers will be on hand this Friday evening to help collect potato donations at the doors of the Aud.

“We’re delighted to honour Don Cameron in this way and to be a part of Don Cameron Potato Night. Fighting hunger is a priority for Zehrs markets,” explained Derrick Pittman, on behalf of Zehrs Markets, “And to be able to honour Don in Kitchener, where the first Zehrs Markets store opened is extra-special for us. It’s another way of us saying ‘Thank you’ to a community that has always supported us.”

But Potato Blitz doesn’t begin and end with Don Cameron Potato night.   All throughout the rest of January and February there are many ways that you can pitch in.  A bag of potatoes may not seem like a lot, but every last spud will feed someone – on it’s own, mashed, in a casserole or a soup.

You can help by giving potatoes directly to the House of Friendship (here or here) or any non-perishable food item to the Food Bank of Waterloo Region via your local grocery store donation bin.   Keep an eye out on February 11th if you are out grocery shopping for House of Friendship Board Members and volunteers.  Chances are good that a team of volunteers will be in the store that day looking for you to help  us to move closer towards our goal of 200,000 pounds of potatoes.  Our volunteers have enrolled the assistance of 26 local grocery stores to get the word out and help collect donations for the Blitz.

Interested in taking the extra step and pitching in a little more?  We need your help volunteering on February 11th (contact Jenn at 519-742-8327 for more info).

In the words of long time volunteer Doug:

“Potatoes are a basic food for so many – what better product to collect to show this. The spud is not glamorous or pretty, but beautiful in that is satisfies a basic human need – food.”

“The Blitz is our opportunity to show we care !  You will meet other like-minded individuals who also believe in helping the less fortunate. There is a lot of team spirit and a sense of community – you and others will feel good on what you’ve done !”

At 8:30am, I arrive at Eby Village, another one of House of Friendship’s programs. Built in 1990, this is an affordable, supportive housing program for single men and women. The tenants and staff work together to make Eby an amazing place of community. Here, I get the privilege of hanging out with the staff and tenants of the program, and working to support the tenants in different areas they may need support.

The staff at Eby Village are always joyful and fun to be around. The Eby office is always full of energy and laughs, while remaining a place for tenants to come to receive support. The two support workers, Walter and Ashley, work to support tenants in various areas.

It is an incredible experience for me to be able to work alongside the staff of this program, and to work with and spend time with the tenants. Many of the tenants bring their pets down to the office for a short visit. They are open to spending time with me and sharing their life stories with me, which is something that I really appreciate. Currently, I spend some of my time on Tuesday mornings working closely with a tenant who has diabetes, or going on outings with a group of tenants.

Food is also an integral part of community life at Eby Village. Twice a month, for example, there are “dining” nights for the tenants; these events cost two dollars per person, and the money given goes back to supporting Eby Village. For these dining events, tenants and staff use resources from their own kitchen or from the kitchen of the hostel to create a delicious meal. Other events like volunteer appreciation dinners and Christmas dinners use food resources around House of Friendship to leave the tenants (and staff!) with full bellies.

Eby residents and friends gather to celebrate 20 years of shared history

Around 11:45, I make my way over to the hostel, where I grab keys to one of House of Friendship’s passenger vans. This giant 8-passenger van is what I drive to pick up mothers and their young children (up to the age of six), to take them to one of two churches in Kitchener. It is when I jump into the green passenger van that I begin my work with Live and Learn (where I also work on Wednesday and Thursday afternoons). This is one of our Family Services programs here at House of Friendship, which provides programming/childcare for children, as well as programming for mothers. On Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, I work with and spend time with the children. I love getting to see their development as I spend time playing with them from week to week, or month to month. It is so great seeing their language and motor skills develop and progress. And it’s also lots of fun seeing their creativity. It’s rewarding to see how excited the children are to meet and play with other children when they get to the group. On Thursdays, I get a bit of a different perspective of the groups: I get to spend time with the mothers, and get a chance to build relationships with them and participate in the activities that they are doing. (Things such as sewing, cooking, and various types of workshops).

Sometimes, I see mothers that I work with at the Live and Learn program access other House of Friendship resources, such as the Emergency Food Hamper program. I find it amazing that there are resources and programs, all under the same umbrella organization, that help individuals to meet needs in various areas of their lives.

At the end of the two-hour Live and Learn program, the mothers and children that I drove to the church hop back into the van to be dropped off back at home. It’s meaningful  to know that I won’t just get to see these women and children once, but that I get a chance to build relationships with them over the course of the year.

It’s no secret that the House of Friendship couldn’t do the work they do without the community.  The Christmas Hamper Program is no different, and depends on volunteers, donations and a lot of hard work.  The Rotary Club has been a big part of the program these last six years and with their annual Turkey Drive to support House of Friendship we are able ensure that thousands of people have a less stressful December.

Rotarians gathered at a luncheon last week to reveal the results of the Drive in the form of a cheque presentation to House of Friendship, and to thank and recognize the many businesses and individuals who stepped up to help make sure every Christmas Hamper request was met.

Surpassing last year’s record amount, the Rotarians raised $267,301.41(gross) for the 2011 Turkey Drive. When Club members realized that they were within $450 of hitting the $1 Million mark for the Turkey Drive over its first six years, in true Rotarian fashion they quickly passed the hat to get them over the top. They did so inspired by the stories of generosity behind the 2011 Turkey Drive.

People gave at work, at their grocery store, on-line, and even gave donations to volunteers handing our turkeys to Christmas Hamper recipients. “This year, we saw more people getting involved in more ways. What we’re actually seeing is the Turkey Drive becoming a community cause, something that is embraced across our community,” commented Jim Erb. “It really has become neighbours helping neighbours”.

Proceeds from the Turkey Drive helped feed approximately 11,000 people, of whom almost forty percent were children, thus realizing the original dream of children sharing a Christmas dinner with their families.

The Turkey Drive is the primary sponsor of House of Friendship’s Christmas Hamper Program, which provides the gift of food to local families in need. Hampers include vouchers that can be redeemed for turkeys. Hampers were prepared and delivered in December by a legion of more than 600 volunteers of all ages and from all walks of life.

Thanks to Erb Transport, Erb & Good Family Funeral Home, First Mennonite Church, and another 115 volunteers, hamper recipients were able to pick up their turkeys at two convenient locations. Volunteers handed out 3,200 turkeys, 400 hams, and 300 Halal chickens during the week before Christmas. Turkey recipients were then able to get home thanks to a special gift from the Kitchener-Waterloo Car and Truck Association that funded bus tickets for those in need.

John Neufeld, our executive director told us that “we knew we would need more hampers and turkeys than ever before. But we also knew that the Rotarians were up for the challenge; driven by their passion for service they mobilized the entire community.  It’s wonderful to be a part of this and we’re just so grateful for all of the families we’re able to help.”

How did you hear about House of Friendship?

I was looking for a place to volunteer, so I googled ‘volunteering’ and House of Friendship (HOF) popped up.  I had heard about HOF before, but I wasn’t sure what all the organization did.

 What do you enjoy about volunteering at the EFHP?

I like all the people that I get to meet here, while packing hampers or working in the warehouse.  I also just like helping in general.  It feels good to do something like this.

 What’s your favourite job at our program?

My favourite job would have to be packing the hampers.  It is nice to be able to hand that food off to people that really need it.  I also really like to see what goes into the hampers.  Every time that I volunteer, there are always different things that go into a hamper.

 How has volunteering impacted your life?

Volunteering has really opened my eyes up to the different situations that people are in.  It has also given me a glimpse of the needs exists within our community.

Are there any other programs that you are or have volunteered with?

I am currently volunteering once a week at a program run by Christian Horizons called Circles Café.  Circles Café is an art program.  I just completed a graphic design program atFanshaweCollegeinLondon, so this is good experience for me as I look for something in my field.

What kind of activities or hobbies do you enjoy when you aren’t working or volunteering?

In my spare time, I enjoy playing the guitar.  I started taking guitar lessons about two years ago, and I just recently stopped taking them.  I am still learning to play the guitar, but I like to play all kinds of music.  I also am really into fitness and graphic design.  I love to watch all kinds of movies, from comedy, to romance and even thrillers.  I am movie lover for sure!

Thanks Amy for taking some time to let us get to know you a little bit better!  Your hard work here at the EFHP is much appreciated!

Have you seen a poster like this around your office? Or have you seen it on a television commercial? It’s a popular piece of media to remind us one of the many ways we can prevent spreading illnesses such as colds and flu’s throughout the community.

However getting a flu shot is one of the best ways to prevent the spread of influenza to yourself, your co-workers, your friends and family, or anyone else you interact with throughout the day. Although the flu shot cannot protect you against the common cold, there are a number of benefits to getting immunized each year.

One of the biggest benefits to getting a flu shot each year is that it prevents spreading the disease to people who are at a greater risk from becoming seriously ill, such as young children, infants, seniors, and those with a compromised immune system such as cancer patients. For these vulnerable populations contracting the influenza virus can sometimes lead to more complicated health issues, or even death; while others may experience only a mild case of the illness (Source). To see if you’re on the recommended list to get a flu vaccine and for more information about the flu shot, click here.

So do you really need any other reasons to get your flu shot?

Even if you’re a relatively healthy individual, protecting yourself against the flu may also help protect others. You may have the luxury of taking sick days from work or have a support system to take care of your children when you’re sick, but many people in our region don’t have one or both of these same luxuries. Catching a cold or flu and being forced to take time off work or manage other illnesses as well can put a tremendous amount of stress into someone’s lives. Not being able to work could mean a downward spiral in the control of their finances. Or having another virus in their body may put them at risk for a long and complication period of hospitalization.

Think back to the story we shared about Ronald, a man who turned to food banks after an injury at work and no paid sick time gave him no other way to feed his family. What if the reason Ronald got hurt was because he couldn’t take time off work while he had the flu and couldn’t concentrate properly to avoid the situation? He may not have had the bus fare to access one of the clinics, because any extra money after paying rent and other bills is quickly used for other circumstances like new clothes for his growing young kids. And keeping money in a savings account rarely happens because each month despite how hard he works life costs about as much as his paycheck earns each week.

And think about how getting the flu will affect people like Anna, a recently diagnosed cancer patient. Her body is already undergoing stress from various treatment options and trying to maintain her strength and weight to keep her healthy. Contracting the flu would be pretty easy for her because her body is on the brink of exhaustion after visiting numerous medical appointments, trying to keep up with eating a balanced diet, and other demands of life such as housecleaning and budgeting. Unfortunately if she does contract the flu there is a good chance it won’t just be a short period of getting extra rest and lots of fluids; Anna has a much higher risk of developing another type of infection like pneumonia, which her body may not be strong or healthy enough to recover from.

Or what if one of the 168 new households that came in for a hamper in December was due to the fact that someone was unable to work or had extra costs after recovering from the flu virus? And what if one of these people was unable to pick up a hamper that they desperately needed for their family because they were too ill and didn’t have the support of a friend or family member to do so on their behalf?

Getting a flu shot is a smart decision – not only for yourself, but for many people in the community who may not be able to cope with the effects of catching the influenza virus. Though the Region of Public Health has just wrapped up most of their community flu clinics, it’s not too late to get immunized. You can make an appointment with your family doctor, go to a walk-in clinic, or visit the Immunization Clinic at the Region of Waterloo.

The more people who are vaccinated, the more protection there is for everyone in the community. (Source)

I am generally at the Emergency Food Hamper Program all day on Mondays (as well as on Thursday mornings and all day on Fridays). When I first arrive at 8:30 in the morning, I am always greeted with a friendly hello from all of the staff and volunteers. For the first two and a half hours, I get to work with the other volunteers and staff who are working in the warehouse. Here, I do things like stock shelves full of items that we provide to patrons – anything from soup, yogurt and pasta to diapers, baby food and dog food. Or, I help bag potatoes or carrots into smaller bags that will be shared in the food hampers. It’s always interesting to see the variety of items that are donated to us, as we receive donations from the Food Bank of Waterloo Region, Loblaws, and individual donations from members of the community. I have found that since working in the warehouse, I have learned so much about food itself – such as what different types of exotic vegetables are used for, or when foods are good until. (For instance, did you know that yogurt is typically good for 14 days after its best-before date? Who knew?) There’s never a dull moment in the warehouse, and the staff and volunteers are always chipper and ready to serve others with joy.

Recently, I finished learning about our intake process and getting some more experience doing intake. We open our doors to the public at 11:00am, and at that time, I am helping at intake. After a while of working in intake to help with the morning rush, I move back and forth between intake and packing food hampers.

Intake involves sensitively welcoming patrons as they come and getting some basic information from them to pull up their files (see Matt’s post here).  I find this part of the job fascinating, for a number of reasons.  Something that I find myself reacting internally to is the diversity in the  ages of patrons who come to use the food hamper program, and the broad scope of life experiences  from which each one comes.

I’ve heard the saying “curiosity, rather than judgement” before. That string of words continues to play through my mind during my experiences here at hampers. Say, for example, there is a patron who may have already had 9 visits with us in a year instead of the “theoretical limit” of 6, and wants another hamper today. Suddenly, I have a choice in front of me. I can grow impatient and frustrated, wondering why this patron doesn’t seem to abide by our guidelines. Or, I can choose to act with grace and patience, perhaps remaining open to the different reasons why this person may be in more dire need for emergency food than just the six hampers a year can satisfy. I can gently explain to this patron how we can help today, and maybe ask more questions to determine what sorts of other resources he or she could access for food in the future.

Often, in asking for a patron’s birthday to pull up a file, I learn that there is a man or woman who is exactly, or near to, my age, or the same age as my siblings (as Mike had experienced, and written about here; or as Allison shared in this post). Suddenly, the person on the other side of the counter is no longer just the person on the other side of the counter. In our short interaction, I see myself in them. Or I see my best friend, or my twenty-year-old twin brothers. It really is amazing how personal it makes things, and how much it makes me appreciate how my life has turned out so far. It just so happens that I have enough money to live comfortably in an apartment with enough food to satisfy. It just so happens that life events have happened, for me, in such a way that I do not find myself wondering where my next meal will come from. But when I am looking at a woman on the other side of the counter who is around my age and who has three kids plus herself to support, I find myself overwhelmed. I realize again and again how easily my life could look different. How easily the tables could be turned. Because really, I require food as much as a patron who comes into our program does. We are both equals in life, in society and in our necessity of food. The only difference is the amount of available resources that each of us has.

These are just some of the experiences through which I am learning a great deal at House of Friendship. There is no doubt in my mind that I will continue to learn exponentially more through the rest of my time here.

Volunteering is in the heart of many when they wish to express gratitude and are compelled to give back. When volunteering at House of Friendship or seeking employment, you will hear the phrase, “I want to give something back”.

Throughout our recent 12 Days campaign and throughout the Holiday season we have heard from people who seem to agree that the best way to wear our faith on our sleeve is to roll up our sleeves and work together.

I have the privilege to know the many faith communities in the Waterloo Region. I meet with a group called Interfaith Grand River (IGR) –  a group who first met together only two days after 9/11. IGR began and continues to be a group that is intentional about listening and learning, speaking and sharing, and in the process, loving, appreciating and building community.

One of my first learning’s with IGR was that these folks are not so different after all – diverse to be sure, but different, not so much. Although I knew that at the heart of many of the world’s religions was a sense of suppressing the bad and holding up the good, my experience at IGR has been beyond that of learning from a book or study, my experience has been on the level of the human heart and human experience.

At the heart of faith communities is giving back: life, food, a place to call home and a community of common experiences with whom to experience life.

The interfaith community volunteers! Food Hampers receives Halal meat from the Islamic community and volunteers in the warehouse. The Sikh community annually supports with food donations and support of food but also volunteer on a farm to grow produce to give away! Community Centres (often representative of new Canadian/immigrant populations) have a great many people who volunteer building trusting and safe communities. Diversity, experience, love and compassion, these are the qualities that are brought to the fore in the many people who volunteer.

As we pause to rest and spend time with our families this weekend we give thanks for our community, whatever their motivation. Thanks to you all. You bring light and life to our neighbourhoods. You are indeed our neighbours and our friends.

It has been an extraordinary 12 days of giving and sharing in Kitchener Waterloo.  Over six hundred volunteers have helped the House of Friendship these last few weeks to move a record number of Christmas Hampers out into the community and into people’s cupboards.

Who are these people? Schools, individuals, businesses, friends and coworkers have collected food, packed it up and driven it out to people.  Others have endured the elements to hand out more than 3000 turkeys and ensure that people have something to share with friends and family as they sit down together this weekend to celebrate each other and to look forward to the coming year.

On this blog we have shared some inspiration, ideas and suggestions on how you can do something big or small to make this region a little nicer for everyone.  We hope that you were moved to action and we would love to hear how it went for you.  Haven’t taken the plunge into volunteering yet?  Why not make it your new years resolution to get out there and volunteer?  There are lots of great places to help you get started.

What good is there in volunteering and the collective efforts of these hundreds of people who have given some, or in some cases, all of their time these last few weeks in the service of others?

Our Executive Director, John, asked these same questions recently.  He shared with us these words:

“We have now finished delivering 4081 “little gifts” in the form of Christmas Hampers.  Delivering these gifts this past week has been an eye-opening experience for me, bringing home the importance of people having appropriate housing, being part of community, accessing addition treatment, and being nourished with food and more.  At the end of the deliveries, I came home with many more questions, and very few answers. What good will this one Christmas Hamper do? What do my efforts matter? Individual efforts can at times seem so futile but when I think about all of our individual efforts combined, I feel hope!”

“My hope is rekindled each time I attend one of our program’s Christmas celebrations.  What a gift to see the transformation of individuals as a result of safe and affordable housing, recovery, life skills training, community building, support with parenting, and a listening ear. So many great stories! Stories that we share with our community to inspire and challenge them to Pitch In and make a difference so that hope can always be present in our community.”

Each day at the many programs of the House of Friendship and the countless non-profit groups that work with people in need, volunteers and hope transform people’s lives.  By sharing tangible goods like food and clothing, or intangible things like a listening year, a caring word and positive attitude you can make a real difference to someone.

Yesterday I spoke with Oscar, who called to update me on his efforts to deliver at least 100 Christmas Hampers.  The last time I had spoken with him, he was already at 125 hampers.  Yesterday he told me he had just finished his 151st delivery.  In response to my words of amazement and congratulation he shared with me “I just program my GPS and drive around and drop them off.  It’s something I really enjoy doing, and when you see how happy people are to receive it, it makes it all worth it.”

If you volunteer, thank you!  Let us know what makes it worthwhile for you on twitter, facebook or the comment space below.  If you’re thinking of volunteering in 2012, what do you hope to get out of it?  As we hope you have seen this last 12 days, it’s easy and it makes a world of difference to everyone in our community.

This is what a woman said to me on the phone last week.  She was one of the many people who were concerned that her Christmas Food Hamper would not be delivered and that somehow her name had gotten lost.

Uncertainty and doubt is a common sight for many non-profit organizations.  Where will my next meal come from? Will I overcome my illness? Will I lose in my struggle with this addiction? I can’t pay my rent this month, will I get evicted?

How do we answer these questions?  With the giving spirit and kindness of volunteers many of them will receive the right answer.  Yes, here is some food. Yes, we will walk with you on your road to recovery.  Yes, we will find you the resources and ensure that you stay housed.

On the other side of the coin, people at this time of year, are swept up in the spirit of giving and wonder where to direct their gifts.   It can be a hard to decide.  There are many needs, many organizations and many causes all asking for your support.  Who should you help?  How will you ensure that the families who need help can get some?

One place you can start is your phone book yellow pages.  What are your interests?  Do you like animals?  Where is the local animal shelter? It is very likely they will always need your help with money, volunteering or gifts in kind. Does someone in your family have an addiction they are struggling with?  There are probably treatment programs in your area that could use your help.

Another great place to start to find the contact information for a non-profit in need of assistance is 211 (more info from our blog here and from their website here) or locally, the Community Information Centre, operated in KW by the Social Planning Council.

If you’re interested in helping programs and agencies that work with people’s immediate needs the Community Information Centre has a handy resource on their website.  It’s a listing of places that help with immediate needs (here) like hospitals, emergency shelters for men, women and youth; as well as programs that assist with food.  They also have a listing of some of the key programs that help with other needs (here) like legal advice, counselling, housing and clothing.

This can be a quick start to finding the right place for you, if you are looking donate.  But maybe you want to learn more about the organization before you write the cheque? You can give them a call and ask them some questions, or you can look them up on the Canada Revenue Agencies website (here), where you can find out more about their financial details and operations.  Most organizations will have an annual report that they will be happy to send you, or you can even find it on their website  (our’s is here).

Non-profits depend on donations to do their work.  If you are not able to make a financial contribution, consider your closets and basement and attic.  You may have some new or gently used clothing, furniture, books, dishes or toys that may delight and make a huge difference to someone in need.  However, consider your intended recipient before driving a truck load of stuff over.  Now is a busy season and many people are in a similar mindset to your own.  It’s hard to help others when you’re up to your neck in bags of clothing, and it’s heartbreaking to have to throw something out because it was left on your doorstep over the weekend and is now waterlogged, falling apart and filthy after getting rained on.  If you have the space to hold onto it, maybe they would appreciate it sometime in the new year?

Every little bit helps.  Even if it’s a set of mugs that you never really needed, or ten spare dollars that you have to share.  It all gets put to use, helping others, and ensuring that they are not forgotten, now, or any other time, the rest of the year.

These are all questions that Carlos, a local radio host with 91.5 The Beat, decided to answer.  As we mentioned previously (here) he is out in the community doing a different volunteer job with a different agency each day for 30 days.  This last Saturday was day Deed 23 and he was helping the House of Friendship distribute turkeys

Today is day 10 of our 12Days campaign.  Tomorrow is the final day of turkey distribution and by that time the last of the Christmas Hamper should be safely stashed away in people’s cupboards.  As of this morning, the final count for Christmas Hampers is 4081!  The 600+ volunteers who have helped accomplish this amazing record have touched the lives of thousands of people.   As Carlos demonstrates, you can make a big difference to someone in the space of an hour or two.  This is something that people never forget.

Have you decided to volunteer yet?  Let us know!  Comment, tweet @HOFKW or post on our facebook wall.