Jenny - ACSC - Blog Post 4

There was a number of unexpected volunteers today so the majority of us were not needed in the Café. Two stayed in the kitchen but the remaining five of us were assigned the task of organizing the donation coat closet.

To begin, we finished packing away the children's clothes. Then, we began preparing for the clients. They would be coming to the closet to pick out clothing and coats. The clients still needing coats wore larger sizes so we bagged the smaller sizes and moved the larger coats to designated racks. Once the clients came in, we headed upstairs to sort through more bags of clothes.

I was really impressed with the amount of business clothes that were donated. The Atlanta Center for Self Sufficiency (AGSS) has a program called CareerWorks that helps their homeless clients apply for jobs and prepare for job interviews. I really like that AGSS is helping in ways that have a long-lasting effect, like helping individuals get back on their feet rather than temporary fix the problem by just handing out money.

After we finished at the Café, we made a quick grocery top and then we were back to work at church! The church has an event where they parade the different ministries of the church to get people involved. They needed 22 signs made in large lettering for the parade. We spent the afternoon making these signs.

After we finished the signs, we prepared for the "Wednesday Dinner", which serves local homeless people. It was similar to Café 458 because it was a nice sit-down dinner.

I really enjoyed this dinner because we really got to interact with the individuals that came. It was so inspiring because most of the congregation members had a solid friendship with those that came regularly.

We also set out clothing for them to look through after they finished eating. Seeing how grateful they were to get clothing and a meal really made me realize what a pressing issue homelessness is and how far a little help really goes.

I've learned so much about all of the avenues in which to support this population as well as the huge differences the non-profits are making.

I really feel inspired to get involved in local non-profits dealing with the same issues. I would love to get to know our homeless population and learning how to help improve their situation. I plan to figure out how to incorporate LINK or Jubilee Café into my schedule. I am also curious to learn about other organizations that I may just not know about.