Second Week of DC

Hi everyone! 

I was on the second YSOP trip to Washington which I personally thought was a great success. On Tuesday, two groups combined and went to Bread for the City, a food pantry in DC which provides groceries for the homeless. The group was able to compose probably hundreds of bags of food and organize several shipments that arrived during our time there. I really liked working there because I felt as though I was helping people directly. We could see who we were helping, since they came in to get food while we were there. Wednesday, however, our group went to Rachael's Women's Shelter. We didn't feel as though it was very organized and didn't really feel like we were actually helping anyone directly, since one of the jobs we did was paint the inside of the closet. There wasn't a very positive energy there, compared to Bread for the City so we didn't enjoy our time there as much. That evening, however, was the Community Meal. This was probably my favorite aspect of the entire trip; I really loved hearing the stories and getting to relate more to each person's situation. It was very nice to be on the same level without the potential barriers that are around every day. Thursday was very busy; we went through Elder Buddies and helped and elderly woman who was a hoarder clean her apartment because she was at risk for eviction. She was really sweet, but it was slightly painful to have to throw things out because it was obvious how much it all meant to her. After doing this, we went to Thrive DC, where we put together the bottom half of an office desk during our time there. While we didn't feel as though we were helping homeless people directly, I think we were able to help Thrive better serve the community by taking care of some tasks that were looming over their heads. We finished our week at Thrive again in the morning, and we served breakfast to approximately 80 homeless people. This was another highlight and it was great to see the people we actually were helping. All in all, it was a very successful trip and it was extremely gratifying, if not a bit emotionally draining.

Thanks!

Abbey C.