During the week of June 10, 2019, 8 members of East Cobb Branch participated in the YMCA Deliver Lunch Program.
The program’s goal is to serve over 300 children each day over school breaks. It needs many volunteers to help deliver and serve lunches to local kids. These children may not be able to have a healthy meal when school is out. The program also inspires volunteers to communicate with the children.
On Monday, June 10th, Faith and Katherine went to Dwell and Bella Grand, and Jay and Maxwell went to Clifton Ridge and packed about 30 lunches in total for 2.5 hours. At Clifton Ridge, there was a 30-minute wait for the rain to settle down, and a few kids quickly came to pick up lunches. Dwell and Bella Grand had similar problems due to heavy rain, delaying the volunteers, food, and residents.
On Tuesday, June 11th, 3 members came to help pack lunches for 2.5 hours. Faith and Jiarong went to Dwell and Jay went to Clifton Ridge and packed about 60 lunches. Some kids came to pick up lunches, and volunteers played with the kids.
On Wednesday, June 12th, 4 members came to help for 2.5 hours and were split into two groups. Jiarong and Faith went to Bella Grand and Jay and Maxwell went to Clifton Ridge. A lot of kids came to pick up lunch today, and about 125 lunches were packed in total for the two sites. Volunteers also had fun playing with the kids.
On Thursday, June 13th, 3 members came. Faith went to Bella Grand and Jay and Maxwell went to Clifton Ridge and packed about 90 lunches for 2.5 hours for the two sites. Today, a moderately large number of kids came to pick up lunches.
On Friday, June 14th, Diane, Jay, Maxwell, and Saloni went to Clifton Ridge, Bella Grand, and The Gallery and packed at least 45 lunches for 2.5 hours. The Gallery was slow, and they only gave out a few lunches. Bella Grand was busier and had around 40 lunches. Kids at Bella Grand also enjoyed playing with chalk with the volunteers.
Our members participated in the whole process of the program by setting up tables, packing and delivering meals to the kids, and carrying bags of food. They also engaged in fun activities with the kids such as playing catch with a ball, throwing a frisbee, and blowing bubbles. The volunteers were very happy to see the kids receive lunches, enjoyed helping the community, and had an amazing experience.
Attendance: Yuanhao Jay Pan (12.5 hours), Maxwell Jiang (10 hours), Jiarong Wang, (5 hours), Faith Huang (10 hours), Katherine Sha (2.5 hours), Saloni Jain (2.5 hours), Diane Chen (2.5 hours)
Reported by Faith Huang/ Maxwell Jiang
