YSOP second week

Last week in DC with the YSOP program was a really great experience for me and I really feel like I have walked away with a sense of fulfillment and like I have accomplished something great. We were broken up into smaller groups and sent to different work sites every day. On the first day the red group (lydia, lauren and dee and later in the week ruthie) were sent to an old woman's apartment through the program Elder Buddies. Our job was to clean her home because she was at risk of being evicted. Although she was very resistant at first, we eventually were allowed into her home where we cleaned her kitchen. Her kitchen had clearly not been cleaned in a very long time. The smell was overwhelming and at first I thought I was going to throw up all over her floor. But after a few hours of work, we had cleaned up her kitchen. Lydia had the task of cleaning the pots and pans and throwing out the many jars on her counter that were filled with a questionable substance that looked like jelly fish. This was certainly not a glamorous job and her apartment still needed more work, but probably the best moment of the day was when she told the social worker we were there with that she would allow volunteers to come every month to clean her home. She was so angry when we first arrived and so resistant to our help and to see that change of attitude gave me a real sense of hope for her future. Elder Buddies is a really great program because it helps to prevent homelessness and provides services to a population that is in such great need.