Pictures of SHARE

My apologies if these aren't the best pictures of SHARE. Hopefully, they'll give you a little idea what the organization is like.

This is a picture of the SHARE warehouse in Bladensburg, Maryland. The warehouse is quite big with 5 loading bays, a drive-in freezer and a drive-in chiller (to keep fruits and vegetables fresh during the hot summer months). The parking lot here offers a good bit of parking except during Distribution Fridays and Saturdays when it can become very congested due to people from various organizations picking up their orders. Other times, you'll see truckers delivering food orders. Also, this is where volunteers help bag various food items.

This is a picture of one of the volunteers working at SHARE and one of the tables they use to bag various food items. Volunteers play a crucial part in helping SHARE keep the price of the food packages down. They supply the labor to bag potatoes, rice, pasta, 16 bean soup mix and other items. By them bagging these various items, SHARE doesn't have to farm out the work and can pass the savings on to those buying the food packages. This is one of the ways SHARE is able to keep the cost of their food packages so low.

This is a picture that shows a small amount of the food SHARE handles. SHARE will distribute during its two distribution days over 700 cases of chicken alone!

This last picture shows you some of the banners of the various organizations that support SHARE. While the primary organization that funds SHARE is Catholic Charities of the Roman Catholic Church, numerous organizations of different faiths and non-religious organizations such as United Airlines and the Midshipman's Association of the U.S. Naval Academy support SHARE as well. SHARE isn't about one particular faith. It is about helping people in need be able to buy the food they need so they can eat. As far as I know, any organization that becomes a sponsor of SHARE can have their banner put on the wall of honor (if you will) where all can see that they support SHARE. The items you see stacked against the wall are food items that will be distributed on Distribution Friday and Saturday. This picture was taken three days before Distribution Friday and the people at SHARE were already getting ready for their two busiest days of the month.

Work permitting, I hope to get down to SHARE again sometime so I can get some pictures of the SHARE staff. They are the people who make SHARE happen. There's Ollie who is the food guru. He is the one searches for the best buys on various items, arranges delivery and keeps track of all the invoices. There is Ninotchka who manages the various volunteer groups who help out at SHARE. There is Chris who works community outreach, briefs organizations about SHARE and how they can become a sponsor. There is Jingle who also works with volunteers and is always a source of encouragement and welcome. She isn't called Jingle for nothing. There is also Henry the money man, Debbie (I'm not sure what she does), another lady whose name I can't remember and a new guy who helps run the warehouse. Lastly, there is Sam who used to run the warehouse but has moved on to bigger and better things. Sam still helps out at SHARE and was responsible for getting me to volunteer last week. Few people know the management of the warehouse like Sam does.

If you're interested in SHARE or would like more information about the organization, their website is: http://www.sharedc.org. If you might be interested in ordering one of their excellent food packages, SHARE has a link on their webpage where you can find one of their sponsors that you can order a package from. You can also drive to the warehouse on distribution days and pick one up directly. If you have any questions about SHARE, please leave a comment and I'll do my best to answer the question. If I don't know the answer, I'll contact the folks at SHARE and get you the answer.

Just a reminder, I'm not directly affiliated with SHARE. I'm only an occasional volunteer at SHARE as well as someone who has bought some of their food packages. As you can tell by my posts on SHARE, I am supportive of the organization. I feel they provide an invaluable service to communities throughout Northern Virginia, Maryland and Washington D.C. Cheers!

SHARE

I helped out at the Washington D.C. SHARE (Self Help and Resource Exchange) yesterday. It was the first time I'd been there in probably three months. Due to work at the Post Office and Medieval Times, I haven't been able to get down there to help out. I did the job I first did when I arrived at SHARE (3 or 4 years ago?). I bagged potatoes. What you do is break down 50-pound sacks of potatoes into 3-pound bags of potatoes. The 3-pound bags are part of the monthly food package SHARE sells. Potatoes seem to be a staple of the package. I suspect it's because they can be used in so many different ways. You can boil, bake, fry and mash potatoes. You can also include them in soups. They're a very versatile vegetable. The amount of potatoes SHARE handles is impressive. I would guess it's at least 5,000 pounds.

Volunteer wise, the largest group was from Prince Georges County Department of Correction. I was impressed with the group as they kept at it and did a good job. The table I was at had two elderly church going ladies. I enjoyed chatting with them. It helped make the time go by Groups of volunteers come from all over Washington D.C. and Baltimore. They come from churches, schools (a lot of high school students do their community service at SHARE) and organizations. I first got involved when I was on active duty with the Air Force. The volunteers are vital to SHARE as it would be impossible to run the program without them. The SHARE staff has only 9 people who have to keep track of all the volunteers, keep the books, do community outreach, seek funding (SHARE is a non-profit that relies on donations as much as the money they make through the food packages they sell), decide what items to include in the package and then organize delivery (Ollie does this) and keep the five warehouses as well as the freezer and chiller clean. It's a massive undertaking.

Volunteering at SHARE can be fun. You meet nice people and you help the community. I very much enjoyed chatting with the two elderly ladies I met. The program itself helps considerably the poor stretch their food dollars so they can have enough to eat. It also covers a wide area. The program reaches Northern Virginia, all of Washington D.C. and Baltimore. If you have some free time and would like to help a worthwhiled organization, you might want to give SHARE a try. Their website is http://www.sharedc.org. If you want to see what SHARE looks like, stay tuned to this blog as I took a few pictures which I plan to post later. Cheers!

SHARE Update 8/27/06

I worked at SHARE yesterday. I was delighted to get to work for them. They're really nice people there and the job is more laid back vice my jobs at Medieval Times and at the Post Office. The only hard thing about the job is when they start on Distribution Saturdays. I had to be there at 5 a.m. 5 a.m. isn't a hard hour for me to be up. What is hard about is that in order for me to be at SHARE at 5 a.m., I have to get up at 3:30 a.m. so I can rustle up some kind of breakfast (don't ask what I ate as you wouldn't be impressed by my eating habits), get dressed, and drive down there (the trip can take any where between 15 and 60 minutes depending on traffic on Interstate-295). After a long hard day at the Post Office, I wasn't keen about getting up super early. Still, I dragged myself out of bed, scoured the fridge for something readily eatable, and slapped on some clothes that were reasonably clean.

It was a typical distribution day in that things were busy all the way until 10:30 or so. After that, it slacked off and by 11:00, we had only a slight trickle of customers. We started cleaning up around 11:30. By 12:30, everything was pretty much done. I clocked out shortly afterwards and drove home. I planned to take a 2-hour nap but fate had other things in store for me. I had difficulty finding out what days I'd work at the Post Office next week and my former best friend Mark Morton called. Then, the folks at Medieval Times called and told me they'd like to come in early. Crap! It ended up being a very long day (I was up for over 19 hours) though it was a profitable one money wise.

One final note on this topic, I'll be glad when summer is over. I know some people love summer but I confess I don't. It is way too hot and humid in Maryland. I like cooler climes. Some where between 65 and 75 is just right for me. Anything above 80 gets annoying for me since I hate sweating. I particularly hate it when I break into a new sweat after I just got out of the shower. It makes me feel like I wasted my time in the shower. Yesterday, it was particularly hot at SHARE and my shirt was soaked with sweat by the time I left. I'll be happy when fall arrives. I like the beautiful colors and the slight chill in the air. (I also like spring with its refreshing rains. There is nothing like breathing the air after it has rained.)

On a different subject: just a reminder that the Maryland Renaissance Festival opened its doors yesterday. It really is a great renaissance festival with great facilities and wonderful acts. It's very affordable and not terribly difficult to get to. It runs until October 23rd (I think). If you have a free weekend, it would be worth your while to check it out. And make sure you try one of their smoked turkey legs! They are really good and fun to munch on.

SHARE Volunteers

Few things are as critical to the Washington D.C. SHARE program as volunteers. The reasons for this is because SHARE couldn't operate without them or offer the great savings they offer in their food packages if it weren't for them. I'll explain why these two statements are true.

First, SHARE maintains a minimal full-time hired staff. I think all totaled there are seven or eight paid staff. Considering SHARE put together and sold over 9,000 food packages in January, I think you can see there is no way just seven or eight people could do it alone. Every package consists of 14 or 15 items. Each item needs someone to hand it out or put it in each package if it is to be done quickly on the two distribution days. SHARE also needs multiple volunteers to run the bulk section where cases and sacks of food are distributed. This past Saturday, there were between 3 and 6 volunteers manning these sections alone. Another area where volunteers were needed was in resupply. As items are handed out, the distribution points on the split assembly line and the area where the bulk items are handed out eventually run out of product. Volunteers are critical in keeping these sections constantly supplied with the needed products. During Distribution Saturday alone, SHARE had at least 35 volunteers working constantly from 5:30 a.m. till at least 10:30 a.m.

Second, it is the volunteers who break down and rebag the 50 pound sacks of rice or potatoes. During January, SHARE repackaged at least 3,000 pounds of rice alone. If volunteers didn't do this, SHARE would have to hire another company to do it like they do with the 3 pound bags of onions they sell in their food packages. While the cost of doing so would be slight per package, overall the cost of hiring a company to repackage various items would put a serious bite in SHARE's budget and in what they could offer in their monthly food packages. The volunteers enable SHARE to save in labor costs and pass those savings on in the form of more food items in the food packages. These savings mean that those who are on tight budgets are able to get more needed food for their money. Without volunteers, some of Maryland, Washington D.C., and Virginia's needy wouldn't be able to get as much food as they can with their help.

I think you can see how volunteers are critical to SHARE's operations. Without these fantastic people, SHARE wouldn't be able to function. It is to their credit, that SHARE can do as much as it does. Thanks to them, thousands have benefited from the SHARE program.

One final note about SHARE's volunteers: In a previous post about elderly people helping out at SHARE, I may have been a little too negative about the young people who volunteer at SHARE. While some young people that help out there have been less than enthusiastic, there are a considerable number of young people who do their families and schools proud. This past weekend, I got to see two such examples. One student from Dematha High School worked without a break for 6 hours. He played a very important part in ensuring those who ordered Super Bowl packages received their orders. Another example is a fine young lady from McNamara High School who helped with the bulk section. Though it was cold in the warehouse (it usually is during the winter), she didn't let that stop her from doing her bit for SHARE. She too worked continuously for over 6 hours ensuring that people received the cases and sacks of product they were supposed to receive while at the same time making sure they didn't get more then they were supposed to receive. While giving an extra bunch of broccoli or bag of pasta wouldn't hurt SHARE, giving an extra case of salmon fillets or chicken thighs could. The lady issued thousands of dollars of product to SHARE's customers without a single mistake. Such young people play a very important part in enabling SHARE to function. They, like its elderly volunteers, are greatly appreciated.

SHARE Prestaging Continued

I found out today that I got one thing wrong yesterday. I found out they also pre-stage the frozen items and that they sometimes have more than just 2 or 3. Today, they had five frozen items. I can also vouch that the pre-staging process does save valuable time later. It took four of us over 2 hours to finish all the pre-staging for the frozen food. After we finished getting all the frozen food pre-staged, it had to be put back in the large walk-in freezer SHARE has. That took another 30 minutes at least. By the time, we had put all the frozen stuff back in the freezer, it was packed. Sam told me that the freezer was even more packed during November and December. During those times, SHARE received an additional 7,000 plus orders per month. The mind truly boggles just how much food SHARE handles in just one month.

Another neat thing I got to do today was meet another one of the awesome volunteers that help out at SHARE. Sam introduced me to Philip who has been helping at SHARE in the D.C. area since it first started (over 15 years now!). He is a man that does what ever needs to be done. So great was his help at SHARE that last year the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington bestowed upong him their highest honor - the Caritas Award. Sadly, last year, Philip also had heart problems and underwent bypass surgery. Initially after his surgery, he couldn't help out at SHARE at all and he was greatly missed. Philip was determined that the important work he had done at SHARE would continue to get done. He actually went out and found a replacement volunteer who continues to help out to this day at SHARE. As soon as Philip recovered enough to where he could start helping out himself, he was right back at SHARE. Today for instance, he helped guide us less experienced volunteers in the pre-staging process. Thanks to his and Chris's expert guidance, the process went smoothly. The result of his help will be pleased customers and ultimately people getting the food they need while making their precious dollars go further. Many kudos to Philip for his many years of selfless service to the SHARE program and to those less fortunate.

DISCLAIMER: All opinions expressed on this blog are my own and in no way represent any other person or organization. In regards to the blog entries concerning SHARE, my blog entries express my own observations and opinions of the Washington D.C. SHARE. They don't in any way represent the official position of the Washington D.C. SHARE or Catholic Social Services of Washington D.C.

SHARE Prestaging Day

Today was prestaging day at SHARE. We had to get ready 16 particularly large orders in advance. The reason SHARE does this is because it helps make things go smoother on Distribution Friday and Distribution Saturday. Large customers can create bottlenecks in the split and bulk orders as volunteers scramble to fill them. By preparing these orders in advance, it helps prevent those bottlenecks, ensures the customers get their orders promptly, and makes it easier for SHARE to ensure they get the right number of the things they ordered. Preparing these orders can be a lot of work. First, you have to lay out pallets to place the order on. Second, you have to carefully place on the pallets the cases and sacks of items the customer has ordered. Third, you have to then fill the split part of the order. Splits are the number of items that are less than a case or sack. An example would orders for broccoli. Each case of broccoli had 18 bunches of broccoli. If a split order required 14 bunches of broccoli then, I'd take 4 bunches out of the case and place the case of 14 on the customers pallet. The last step is where each order is wrapped with clear plastic wrap (like Saran Wrap). What this does is hold all the boxes and bags in place so when the pallet is moved, they don't fall off.

Not all the items that are ordered by the customer are placed on the pallets during pre-staging. Some are held until the day the customer will pick the order up. These items are items that must remain frozen. One example would be salmon fillets, another would be chicken thighs. Usually, there are only 2 or 3 such items so it doesn't create any great problem waiting to hand these items out until the day the customer is prepared to pick up the orders. By pre-staging the big orders, the majority of the work is done freeing up people to work on other orders on the distribution days. It's a good system that works well for SHARE and its customers.

SHARE Elderly Volunteers

When people look at the elderly, they may not realize just how productive they can be. The people at SHARE know first hand what these incredible people can do. A number of volunteers there are elderly people from various church groups that have made SHARE their special project. Today, I saw two such examples. A group of ladies from Mount Pleasant Baptist and a group of ladies from Pilgrim Baptist did their once a month trip to help out at SHARE. Unlike young people, these ladies weren't distracted by calls on their cell phone, trying to look cool in front of their peers, or only doing it because they had to. They were there because they genuinely wanted to help and they DID. While I was busy helping out at SHARE today, I got to observe the ladies from both groups. They were something else. They got themselves into a rhythm and they bagged a LOT of rice. They could've easily put a lot of the youngsters who help out at SHARE to shame. People should remember that just because people are old doesn't mean they're useless. The elderly people who help out at SHARE prove time and again that they can be priceless volunteers who can make a BIG difference. Many kudos to the groups from Mount Pleasant Baptist and Pilgrim Baptist churches. Your churches should be proud of you.

SHARE Post 1/23/06

I got to learn more today about SHARE's operations. Today, the more perishable items were delivered such as kiwi fruits, broccoli, carrots, and apples. Once the items were delivered, the items had to be moved to two different sections. The two sections are bulk and split. The bulk section is where cases or sacks of items will be distributed on Distribution Friday and Saturday. The split section is where items less than a case or sack will be distributed such a single bag of carrots or one 3-pound bag of potatoes. We also received frozen food items such as the special Super Bowl package SHARE is offering and salmon fillets. These items were moved into the large walk-in freezer. As the same time, volunteers continued to break down 50-pound bags of rice into 2-pound bags. It made for a busy day. In no time, two o'clock had arrived and it was time to head home. Tomorrow promises to be another busy day at SHARE. I look forward to learning more about how they operate.

SHARE Update

We had a fantastic turn-out today. At one point, we had ten tables of people bagging potatoes. I would guess that we bagged at least 3,000 pounds of potatoes and at least 1,000 pounds of rice. I'm sure SHARE appreciated all the people who showed up. Special kudos to Georgetown Preparatory School. It was awesome to see kids from that school show up and help out.

For those of you who missed out today, there will be bagging week all of next week, every day from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. I'm sure SHARE would appreciate any help they can get. Next Saturday, there will be Distribution Saturday which starts at 6 a.m. It promises to be busy though not as hectic as the holiday season. Sam, all around good guy, told me that they had orders for over 9,000 food packages. That is less than what they had during the holiday season when they received orders for over 16,000 food packages! Again, if you can help, I'm sure they'd appreciate it and you would be helping a good cause while getting to work with some fantastic people.

SHARE Update 1/20/06

Time to post an update on what's happening at the Washington D.C. SHARE. Sam Minor, jack of all trades and all around good guy, continues to show me the ropes at SHARE. Tuesday of this week, Sam showed me how to use a mechanized lift so I could help him reorganize all the pallets SHARE has. All the food SHARE buys comes on pallets and they have quite a few of them. Sam wanted to weed out the broken pallets and better organize the good ones so they didn't take up as much space. He also showed me how a forklift works in advance of the forklift safety course I'm going to take on February 1st.

Today, my lessons on how SHARE works continued. I got to play quality control inspector. Every shipment of food SHARE orders has to be quality checked to make sure the seller is providing what was promised. This morning, seven pallets of bagged onions arrived. I got to pull a random sack of bagged onions from each pallet, open the sack, and count out how many bags of onions were in the sack. Each sack was supposed to have 29 bags of onions. Most had 30 though one sack only had 25. Another thing I got to check was the quality of the onions. SHARE can have a major problem is a lot of the onions are bad as its customers will refuse them. In this case, all the onions appeared to be fine.

Another operation I learned at SHARE today was how to make the bags they use to bag potatoes. The bags are made of red plastic mesh. SHARE buys large rolls of the mesh. The mesh is put up on a roller at one end of a table. At the other end of the table is another roller with space running the length of the roller and a notch in it at one end. The person making the bags ties a knot in the beginning of the red mesh, puts the knotted end inside the notch on the roller, turns the roller so the red mesh starts wrapping around the roller, and keeps turning the roller until the mesh covers the length of the roller. Once that's done, the person takes a pair of scissors or wire cutters, and slices down the open space in the roller. This guarantees a consistant size red mess bag for the potatoes. Later, the red mess strips are tied at one end by another volunteer who then opens the bag at one end, and places it over the another bag. Eventually, they create a large stack of red mesh bags which people bagging potatoes can easy pull bags from. These bag stacks are then stored in large boxes until SHARE needs them to bag potatoes.

Tomorrow, I'll get to start learning how to supervise different groups of volunteers. SHARE expects to have quite a few as it'll be bagging Saturday. That's the day, SHARE bags items that have to be bagged such as potatoes or sweet potatoes. The groups vary enormously. Some have volunteered for years while others are totally new to SHARE. The person supervising the groups shows them what needs to be done, assigns them a table, and makes sure they bag the proper amount of food. Tomorrow, we'll be breaking down 50 pound bags of potatoes into 3 pound bags. Once the potatoes have been broken down into 3 pound bags, volunteers will place 20 3-pound bags of potatoes into the empty potato sacks. On Distribution Friday and Saturday, these sacks will be distributed in bulk shipments. SHARE also fills up large container boxes with the 3-pound bags of potatoes. These boxes are used to fill split orders such as an order calling for 9 bags of potatoes.

The time proven system works well. Come Distribution Friday and Saturday, SHARE will be able to hand out hundreds of pounds of potatoes very quickly to its customers. They in turn will take them back to their respective organizations where they'll deliver them to the people who ordered them as part of a standard food package.

If you think you might be interested in helping out tomorrow, please check SHARE's webpage for directions to the Bladensburg warehouse. Bagging starts tomorrow at 7 a.m. Volunteers are welcome to come by themselves or as part of a group. If you arrive at the warehouse and aren't sure what to do, just ask for Sam or Jingle, and they'll be glad to show you how it's done. I hope to see you at the warehouse tomorrow. Cheers!

SHARE Distribution Day

4:00 a.m., time to get up. It was the beginning of a busy morning. I'd promised the folks at SHARE that me and Tami Baldon would help out on distribution Saturday. That meant I had to be on the road by 5:15 a.m. Poor Tami, who really hates getting up early had to drag herself out of bed only to find her mom in the bathroom. Her mom was recently promoted to assistant manager at the Chik-Fil-A down the street. Part of her assistant manager duties is opening it at 5 a.m. So Tami found her mother busy getting ready for work at the same time she needed to be out the door so we could drive to SHARE. She finally made it and off we went.

The drive to SHARE was uneventful. We made good time though we did get one shock when we got there. Previous distribution Saturdays didn't start till 6 a.m., not so on this one. We got there at 5:35 a.m. and all the parking spots were filled. People were picking up food packages already. We managed to find a spot thanks to Sam Minor, SHARE's webmaster I've mentioned previously. We then walked in and wondered where we should help out at.

Sam suggested bagging sweet potatoes but I wasn't thrilled with doing that. Jingle then came up and asked if I'd like to be a checker. What is a checker you ask? A checker is a person who takes the customer's order sheet and fills it. There are two kinds of checkers at SHARE. One checker gets single or small lot items such as 5 bags of apples while the other kind of checker handles orders for cases of stuff example: 4 boxes of black eyed peas. Both jobs are very important as they make sure the customers get what they've ordered. Neither me or Tami had been checkers before. I nervously decided to try it. Tami unbeknownst to me became a checker for cases of items.

In my opinion, the small order checker job is the harder of the two checker jobs because you've got more items you have to watch over though the large order checker could cost SHARE more money if they mess up. The small order checker checks off the number of each item the customer receives and makes sure the customer agrees with that number. You also have to make sure the people handing out the items give the customer the right number of items. A few times I found those giving out the items miscounted. Another problem you have is with stuff that the customer rejects an item for one reason or another. In one case, a customer rejected a bag of onions because one of the onions in the bag was bad. The checker also had to explain to the customer how things are done. Repeatedly, I had to explain to customers how they were going to receive their order of tangelos. We were prebagging them 20 to a bag and then putting in another bag anything under 20. So if a customer ordered 75 tangelos, they received 3 bags of 20 and another bag of 15. Lastly, I had to make sure the customer agreed he or she had received all the items I'd checked off and signed the form proving they'd received the goods. I then signed it and turned it into the office. For me, it was a nerve wracking job because I wanted to be absolutely sure the customer received everything they'd paid for.

The morning went quickly as the line of customers didn't seem to shrink for hours. I would finish processing one order, sign off on the paperwork, and promptly go back to the beginning of the line to start processing another order. The orders didn't slow down till 11 a.m. It was incredible how much food was distributed. When me and Tami first arrived, there cases of food stacked up on the warehouse floor. When we were all done, almost all the cases were gone. We actually ran out of turkey link sausages and had to substitute those with packages of ground turkey meat. The warehouse which had been filled with food now looked incredibly empty. Having the warehouse so empty though was a good thing as it meant those who figured how much to buy of each item had gotten it right. They would have very little left over that they would have to sell later.

Me and Tami left about noon and drove back to the apartment complex. For the people who work at SHARE, they would put away the leftovers, and see about tidying the place up. For them, the big holiday surge was over. They could finally take a breather though in 2 weeks time, things will begin to spin up again. It is a continous cycle. The beginning of the month sees them taking orders and then ordering the necessary food. They also organize how ever many volunteers show up to help do whatever jobs need to be done (bagging potatoes, beans, or other food stuffs, making bags, boxing fixings, etc.). Things will begin to surge as it gets closer to distribution day. Distribution day is the peak of the surge. After all the food is distributed, they'll see what's leftover, start working on what is going to be in the next month's food packages, and take a short breather.

The people at SHARE have to find their work deeply satisfying. They help a lot of needy people stretch their food dollars while at the same time ensuring they get good nutritious food. They also help to build community by encouraging volunteerism. People who buy the packages are expected to do 2 hours of community service for each package they buy. SHARE is also a place where young people learn about community service and helping others. I've seen a lot of high school students do their mandatory community service there. For some students, it may be one of the few times where they get to help those less fortunate. I'll never forget meeting some students from Georgetown Preparatory School. Those kids reeked of money and the good life. It had to be a real eye opener for them to help out at SHARE.

If you might be interested in helping out at the SHARE warehouse in Bladensburg, I have their webpage linked on my blog. The webpage has a phone number where they can be reached as well as directions on how to get to the warehouse. I can promise you you'll meet some nice people including Jingle and help a worthy cause.

SHARE 12/16/05

I helped out at SHARE for the third day this week. I must be a glutton for punishment. I also got a surprise today, SHARE decided to set up a distribution line that stayed open until 5:30 p.m. The line wasn't as busy as it is on distribution Saturday's but we did get a fair amount of customers. I ended up helping out in a number of areas. I handed out potatoes initially, then started bagging tangelos for the table next to mine. Later, I handed out onions, apples, celery, sweet potatoes, black eyed peas, and pancake mix. It kept the work interesting. I also got to enjoy some of Jingle's excellent chicken and rice soup. That helped keep you warm in the warehouse.

Another person I'd like to tell you a little about is Scott. Scott is the executive director at SHARE, the big man who runs the whole show. He's a very nice guy who shows no sign of having a big man attitude. Like other people who work at SHARE, he's a jack of all trades. He helps fill orders, hand food out, and do whatever else needs to be done. Scott also usually leads the morning prayer on distribution Saturdays. It's a nice prayer and a nice way to start things on those days.

One correction I have to make to my last SHARE post, there isn't any sub-group managers. I spoke with Chris today to make sure I understood how things work as far as the orders go. He said the individual who wants to order for a package or packages goes to whatever group that is taking orders (usually a church) and they in turn come to the SHARE warehouse to pick up the orders. Chris and the other four group managers deal with those groups over any problems, showing them how to promote SHARE, how to take orders, and how to turn the orders and money in.

SHARE 12/14/05

I'd promised Sam and Karen yesterday that I would help out again today. Still, I was dragging my feet. I finally got my act together around 10 a.m. and hit the road. Traffic was light on Interstate-295 (Baltimore Washington Parkway) and I arrived at the SHARE warehouse in Bladensburg half and hour. I expected another boring chilly day of bagging sweet potatoes. It was not to be to my surprise.

The first surprise I got was when I bunch of 3rd or 4th graders showed up at the warehouse. I don't know what school they were from but I have to applaud them. It was great of them to bring the kids down to warehouse to help. It helps teach the kids about giving something to the community and caring about others less fortunate. Karen alias Jingle (probably because of her wonderful personality) briefed the kids on what they had to do. It was the same job I'd done the day before. You weighed out 2 and 1/2 pounds of sweet potatoes, put them in a plastic sack, tie the open end of the sack, and put 12 bags of potatoes in each box or large potato sack. The kids took to it with gusto though they did have to be shown just what was 2 and 1/2 pounds. Barring that, I doubt SHARE had seen such enthusiastic volunteers.

The second surprise I got was when Chris, one of the group account managers, told me they needed help in the back. Little did I realize what I was getting myself in for. Certain orders are so big that SHARE gets these orders ready ahead of distribution day. Chris and some other volunteers were busy getting these orders ready. It is hard work as an order may have 5 50-pound sacks of potatoes, 3 40-pound sacks of onions, 8 40-pound boxes of apples, 4 40-pound boxes of celery, and 5 30-pound boxes of tangelos. In no time, I was beat from lifting the boxes though Chris kept right on trucking. I guess he's use to such work. I know I'm not and found new admiration for his surprising strength.

FYI, SHARE has five group account managers of which Chris is one. Each group account manager manages a certain region. Chris told me they have one that handles the city of Baltimore, another handles Washington D.C., and others handle regions in Maryland and Virginia. The individual members of the SHARE program will go to a sub-group manager who in turn goes to the group manager. Only if the matter is particularly urgent will an individual member go to the group manager i.e. they got shorted 50 pounds of potatoes or large quantity of some other item.

Karen alias Jingle is another person you should try to meet at SHARE. This lady walks around with a permanent smile on her face and a song in her heart. I've never seen her angry. She has repeatedly shown great kindness to volunteers who help out at SHARE. One of the first things she did when I arrived this morning was direct me to where some hot chicken soup and hot chocolate was. She is also working on a list of volunteers so SHARE can host a get together for them to show its appreciation for what they do as well as let them know of other events at SHARE. She is definitely one of the people that help make it fun to help out at SHARE. If you show up there some time, make sure you say hi to Jingle.

Boxing Day at SHARE

I got help out again at the Self Help and Resource Exchange (SHARE) in Bladensburg today. Today was boxing day at SHARE. What boxing day is is where you put together boxes and then fill them with the fixings that go with their ham or turkey food packages. Typically this includes stuffing mix, mash potatoes, a bag of frozen vegetables, corn bread mix, and some other stuff.

The warehouse opened at 7 a.m. In order to be there when they opened, me and Tami headed out at 6:15 a.m. The drive was uneventful and we arrived shortly before things kicked off. Putting the boxes together was easy. I found once I got into a rhythym, I was able to steadily knock out quite a few boxes. Initially, I thought all we were going to do was put boxes together but, I found out the people who run SHARE also planned to fill them in advance of distro day. Tami and I got tagged to help out with the line they formed for filling the boxes. Tami stuffed the bag of frozen veggies, a packet of some kind of seasoning mix, and a box of stuffing mix into the boxes. My job was to stack the boxes on pallets and when we got enough boxes, wrap them in something resembling saran wrap. The group we were with worked hard and got a lot done. I figured we assembled and packed over 500 boxes of fixings for distro day before me and Tami left. The two of us ended up spending over 4 hours at SHARE. It was nice to help out again and I look forward to helping out on distro day. I may also try to help out after I take the final for the college class I'm taking.