Day 365

It was the PERFECT night at SafeHouse!! It started with some conversation with the man who lives under the bridge - he told Cindi and I the story of him getting hit by a pick up truck, and explained what egg custard is since neither of us has ever heard of it.

The crowd was smaller than usual, it being New Year's Eve and all, so I said hello to a few more people before heading inside to help make grilled cheese sandwiches. There was no church serving tonight, but the group visiting there and a few of us volunteers were more than happy to help put something together!

While doing that and having random NYE conversations with one of the ladies outside it seemed like something was going on there tonight, especially since some of my family members SHOed up! I was asked to come inside for something and walked in to see cake and cards set up in the serving kitchen! Once getting through the thank you's, the hugs, and some cake we started making plates with cake, sandwiches and bowls of potato soup.

We served the meal, had some conversations with a few more people inside, hung out with the awesome group staying there (Happy Birthday David!!) and of course the best volunteers anywhere!

It was definitely the perfect end to this project! Looking forward to going back tomorrow :)

Day 360

The past few days have been emotionally draining but my night at SafeHouse was a welcome break from it all, filled with some good conversations and helping in the kitchen. I started off catching up with a gentleman I haven't seen for a few weeks. The last time I saw him he told me that he would be moving in to a winter shelter and would not need to come to SafeHouse for meals while he was there. But he stopped by today to socialise and it was great catching up with him.

The gentleman who lives under the bridge shared food stories with me :) We talked about fried chicken, butter milk and corn bread, and his all time favorite seasoning - Mrs. Dash lemon pepper seasoning. I'm definitely going to have to try this one out!

Before I left for the night I had a cathartic discussion (I think discussions can be cathartic, maybe). This gentleman talked with me about relationships in his life and the emotions that arise when some relationships end. We talked about making life altering decisions and how those decisions are clouded by emotions, as well as how sometimes it's better to wait and control the emotions before making a decision. We talked about trust and respecting yourself and the other person, because any relationship without those things will fall apart. He was talking specifically about his relationship but this is the basis of so many relationships.

As this project comes to an end, I'm once again reminded of how much this year has given me...

Day 359

SafeHouse hosted a Christmas Party this morning/afternoon for some wonderful families! I arrived at about 9am and helped get some of the basic setting up done. Before I knew it, it was time to get to the apartments to pick up families and bring them back to SafeHouse for lunch. After 3 trips we had everyone there enjoying some delicious food and waiting in excitement for their presents.

A LOT of volunteers were able to make it out (they're amazing!) so we had several people making plates, serving food and soda, interacting, cleaning up and just doing whatever was needed at any given moment. Santa also made a special appearance and the kids loved it! With his arrival, the gifts were handed out and all you could hear was laughter and excitement in the room!

The event was perfect! And it was a great way to start my day :)

Day 302

It was a really really really cold night at SafeHouse! I don't know how people living on the streets make it through nights like this one. Many of them had big coats and jackets on, a lot of them were looking at staying at the shelter tonight, but there were still some people who would be sleeping outside - thinking of them tonight and hoping they stay warm through the night.

I hung out with two gentleman who hadn't been at SafeHouse in a long time. The first has found an abandoned home to stay in - he is looking for a job and slowly piecing his life back together. I asked what he's been doing with his time and he said he had been doing a lot of reading. We shared what books we were each reading, made recommendations on what the other should try out, and swapped favorite genres. He is one of those guys who faces the facts, he's realistic, and makes no excuses for himself. I hope he finds his way back to the life he wants, and that his small steps at change make an impact on his life.

The other gentleman shared that he is now off the streets, has a place to stay, a job, food, and clothes. He looked well, and better than the last few times I had seen him. He has always wanted to go back to work, and it seems that life may be coming back together for him. He told me that he did not want to be homeless again, and I'm hoping that is enough motivation to keep him going forward.

I spent some time talking to a lot of the regulars, most conversations were just "check-ins" since I'd been there twice this week already. I helped some people get different items that they needed, talked to one younger gentleman about controlling anger, joked around with the other volunteers, handed out tickets at the end of the evening, and had too much fun!

I'll definitely miss going there every few days, but I'll be back and will have lots of catch up conversations next time!

Day 299

Happy Diwali!!

Dona hung out at SafeHouse this morning  - details coming soon!

We've been writing letters for the Bert Show's Big Thank You. On the show this morning they said that they had less than 200,000 letters (their goal is 400,000), so I decided to continue the letter writing to help, in my small way, to get them to their goal. I've written a handful and it reminds me how much I have to be grateful for :)

I also took a few moments to visit care2 and go through their click to donate tabs. That's all for today! Hanging out at SafeHouse tomorrow :)

Day 290

Today's giving was through sparked.com

My first challenge was for Nourish America, an award-winning national charity that empowers Americans in need by improving their health and well-being with nourishing foods and nutritional supplements. Their challenge was for ideas on how to raise funds and spread the word on their mission. 


The next was for the Foundation for Agricultural and Rural Resources Management and Sustainability (FARRMS). They just redid their website and wanted feedback on the design...it's actually pretty cool!

The last one was for Playworks SLC - they energize recess at public schools, teach conflict resolution and leadership through games, and support amateur sports.They needed info on how to set up a 5k race.

I also wrote another Thank You letter for troops overseas - taking a moment to think about each letter I write gives me a whole lot of things to be grateful for :)

Day 276

I'm back from retreat, feeling completely relaxed, and hoping to be more mindful :)

Started off the week with a visit to SafeHouse. I started the evening in a long conversation with a gentleman who told me about his relationship with his fiance and with his son. We talked about friendship and love, and he talked about how difficult it is to define love. He also shared that he is getting closer to being able to go home, hopefully that works out for him!

I also saw a gentleman from my early days at SafeHouse - hadn't seen him since about April/May, so that was a pleasant surprise. He filled me in on how he has been doing and shared that he joined a three month program and that he has been focusing on school. We talked about burn out and keeping boundaries when working in a social science type field.

I also spent some time asking some of the guys to write letters to troops for the Bert Show's Big Thank You. Hoping to get a few more over the next two weeks.

A big thank you to everyone for covering while I was away!!

Day 260

It has been one of the most difficult days for some of the people I care about and for myself. I really didn't think I would make it out to volunteer but I know that this is no longer just my project and I can't drop the ball now. So today's giving was for the friends and family who have been there every step of the way...

I got to SafeHouse early and there were just a handful of people on the lot. I spent the entire evening sitting in a group with some awesome volunteers and amazing SafeHouse regulars. We talked about so many different things and really just enjoyed the pleasant weather and great company. Conversations included chocolate and cookies, recycling, the personality of inanimate objects, mental illness, business ideas, and the usual joking around.

I ended the night with quick conversations with some familiar faces and then cleaning up the lot and the street with my cleaning partner. He and I talked about music and brainwashing as we cleaned up. He has some interesting views on certain types of music.

Even though I go there as a volunteer, today they gave me more than I gave them. Thank you for the laughter, it gives me what I need to keep going.

Day 248

Jiten and I started our Labor Day holiday off with meal deliveries for Open Hand. We had a couple of stops at different apartment buildings, and had all but one meal delivered successfully!

We got a lot of "thank you's" from the residents and a few minutes of exchanging pleasantries with everyone - sometimes that's the only interaction they have for the day, so we both make sure to always spend the time doing that.

Once we were done, we headed back. We made our deliveries in less than 2hours, thanks to my impeccable direction-giving!

Day 244

Whatever the word is for beyond exhaustion - that's where I am today!

On my way home I stopped at SafeHouse and spent the evening having conversations. There was a regular church group there today and they were super organized so I stayed outside on the lot and had many conversations. It started with a lady who was just really angry, a couple of us were talking and she joined our conversation but left soon after because everyone kept trying to turn her statements into positive things.

I caught up with some of the regulars and conversations went from cars, to fishing, to property in Athens. As the evening came to an end, I met a lady with three little kids - a 3year old boy, 2 year old girl (her birthday was today), and a 9month baby girl. She has been on the streets and came to SafeHouse a couple of weeks ago to ask for help. She has been staying at a nearby hotel while they arrange for some permanent housing/programs for her to move to.

She arrived at SafeHouse at the end of service and needed to get back to the hotel with her kids. After some planning by one of the most wonderful guys there, he asked if I would be able to give the lady a ride to the hotel. I was more than happy to help out. As I drove, we talked...she seems like someone who is ready to get herself and her kids back on track. Once we got to the hotel, and they were in the process of checking in, I played with the kids. They have so much energy, laugh a lot, and loved the extra attention. They are beautiful, innocent children and I hope they get off the streets and that their mum is able to put her life back together.

Thank you SafeHouse for helping her start to find her way...

Day 243

My apologies, everyone, for the delay in posting our blog for tonight!

Wow, where do I start... Giselle (our friend), approached us less than three weeks ago with a desire to do a 'cocktails for a cause' event for the American Cancer Society's Hope Lodge, where her grandparents stayed. For patients suffering from cancer, the Hope Lodge hosts and tends for their needs for FREE!

After speaking to the administrative staff of the organization, we just KNEW they needed a little spark from the girls of Project 365. So after several conversations, innumerable emails, and nights after nights of planning we decided to have a Fundraiser for the Hope Lodge.

Tonight our weeks of planning came to fruition! And we couldn't have been more ecstatic with the turn out tonight!

We had lovely little melange of diversity tonight.
We had patients and staff from the Hope Lodge, families and friends of patients, colleagues and co-workers, our close friends and family - all out to support our cause tonight.

Chandni drove all the way out from Milledeville, Giselle took a half day, Raksha from RaRaw Candles cleared her afternoon - and we all came together to put together an amazing event.

And The Nook? They were outrageously understanding and supportive. I've not seen such heart-felt and community oriented group of individuals within one business in a very long time.

Our guests bought drinks, candles, and then donated in addition to that! We'll have a total amount for all of you soon after The Nook reviews their sales report for the night.

I cannot begin to express my gratitude towards everyone that lent us their support for the night. Not only did our friends and family go out of their way to support us, but you all came out with open hearts and open wallets!

This is where we (and I can speak for Chandni) draw our inspiration from. From you. From all of you who continue to inconvenience themselves, and make an unselfish move towards our mission to give back each and every day.

A 'THANK YOU' is probably not enough. But we mean it with the utmost respect and sincerity. Thank you... Thank you... THANK YOU!

RaRaw Candles

Day 230

Today's SafeHouse conversation was about energy and how it can pretty much make you (positive energy) or break you (negative energy). I was talking to a gentleman about his plans for the future - he said he was hoping to stop having to come to SafeHouse by the end of the month and that he has been working on getting his life back together. He said he was trying to focus on being positive and that that would help him in getting things fixed.

We talked about his life experiences and how much he enjoyed each, regardless of it being a good or bad experience, because he always learned from them. In this sense he said he was rich, because when he looks back on his life he only feels happiness. He doesn't measure his wealth by money; he measures his wealth by the relationships he has with people and the experiences he has been through.

Our conversation ended with a compliment he gave me that reminded me of the power of a simple conversation. He is someone I have talked to regularly since I started going to SafeHouse. He reminded me of this and told me that I have always given him lots of positive energy just from talking to him and that it has finally rubbed off on him. He went on to say that he thought my positive energy would eventually "rub off" on most people there. I was pleasantly surprised by the reminder that a conversation goes a long way for all of us :)

Day 229

The weather was PERFECT for walking around the city.

Lablanc and I headed out this evening to pass out subs, water, and socks to our friends in the city. We started off at Hurt Park handing out food and talking to some people who come to SafeHouse most nights. These guys were so grateful because they hadn't gotten any food today. We talked about vampires, food, the weather. Another group of us talked about living on the streets, sleeping on the streets, people who are homeless stealing from one another, the atmosphere at one of the shelters - this conversation was really informative for me, especially some of the details on living at a shelter. The guys also talked about the service held at Garnett Station and the chaos that it usually is. Before we left here I got to see something wonderful - one of the guys asked another if he had eaten yet. The second responded that he hadn't. The first then told him what food he had and offered it to the second - he made my day, and I thanked him for being so generous :)

We moved on to a popular church spot and saw some more familiar faces. Here we met a gentleman who goes to Home Depot early each morning in search for a job as a day laborer. He also talked a little about the things he sees from sleeping out on the streets. From there we walked down Peachtree, handing out socks to people that needed a pair, and made it back all out of food, water, and socks!

It takes so little to make a difference, and this random giving was amazing - can't wait to do it again!

Day 228

I had a tough day at SafeHouse today.

Hema and I made it there after work this evening. We started with talking to a gentleman across the street from SafeHouse. We talked about work, family, hunting, food. He and I always have a good time talking and he gets most people laughing, so we had a fun conversation.

Once inside we caught up with some of the regulars, got asked if we were twins, and got to watch a playful game of basketball. We also got to talk to one of the guys about relationships, his most recent heartbreak, and how each person moves on in a different way.

After that, my night became a little stressful. Tomorrow there won't be a group serving (that's twice this week and we're not even half way through the week!). Apparently there are going to be some changes at SafeHouse and, for a variety of reasons, the nightly impact service may no longer be every night. I know people will find elsewhere to eat, but will they have a place to go where they can be themselves, where they don't have to sit through service to get a meal, where they can socialize, play games, just chill out and still get a meal? I don't know. What can I do about it? Not sure, but for now I'll take meals to whoever I can...so for tomorrow's giving I am going to try take some meals to the park. If you're interested in helping, let me know :)

Day 218

I made it through this evenings downpour and made it to SafeHouse. The few people who were there were already inside. I walked in the front door to a leaking/falling roof, so we cleaned up as much as we could and mopped the floor to keep from slipping.

As the rain let up more people came through. I had as many conversations as I could: one gentleman told me about his visit with his mum, another told me about meeting his cousin after 10years, another group of us talked about accents and vocabulary used by different people. Another group of us talked about addictions and scenes from the streets.

The night was full of laughs and light conversation. Once service was over I passed out socks. There wasn't much to clean up and the drizzle was starting, so a lot of people left as soon as they got their dinner. Hopefully they all find somewhere dry to sleep tonight!

Day 217

I finally made it back to SafeHouse!! I missed it and everyone there so it was really nice to be back. I also dropped off the back packs we put together for tomorrow. Service was held outside this evening since they had all the back packs. There was only a small group there this evening because its the first week of the month. There were only a couple of familiar faces there, so I played catch up with those few.
I spent most of the evening talking to one gentleman about luck, life, and ice cream! We kept going off on food tangents, but that's usually how our conversations go :)

We ended the night with cleaning up and treating some of the guys to wings from Hooters, a good end to a good day! Looking forward to tomorrow :)

Day 212

Back on the road, spent a little while at SafeHouse before I left town this evening. Had a really good conversation with someone I see there all the time but hadn't gotten around to talking to till today. Our conversation started with how we both smile all the time. He then told me a little bit about himself and then we talked about good deeds, challenges, and how each person faces their own set of challenges, has their own way out of those challenges, and that those are the things that make us grateful for each day. He isn't looking for a way off the streets, but he's looking for a way to make each day count!

I also saw one of the guys from my early days at SafeHouse. He had been traveling in California and just got back this week so he shared some of his stories. I think he said he'll be around for a while, so hopefully get to catch up with him a little more next time.

Since I'm on the road, it's another week of virtual volunteering for me and, hopefully, have someone fill in a couple of days if possible.

Day 200

Finally back in town and able to go to SafeHouse! I have to admit I was a little nervous since I hadn't been in a while, but once I got there it was like I hadn't even left (besides the conversations about my trip).

Most of my conversations were catch up conversations, but there were a few other ones about food (lamb chops specifically!), music, people being real. There were other conversations about movies, work, and moving. I also spoke to one of the guys about his life, love, and the things he had been through. It was the first time he and I had such a conversation and I am glad he shared his story with me.
 
It was awesome being back and seeing everyone!

I'd like to give a special thank you to LaBlanc and Blair! I was outside socializing when LaBlanc said I was needed inside. I walk in, its the end of service, and Blair leads the group in singing happy birthday! I was really surprised! And it was definitely one of my favorite moments from today :) Thanks guys!!

Day 190

Dona and I had a fabulous DAY of giving today!

We volunteered with Project Live Love. A non-profit organization designed to influence culture through love in action by engaging, networking and mobilizing people who are motivated by love.

Today they had their quarterly Live Love event. An event designed to provide hands-on opportunities of service for individuals to meet community needs. They organize several different service projects for the day, from helping turn a house into a home for someone, working with at-risk youth, painting facilities, to hanging out with people in the park. Dona and I chose to do the Picnic in the Park.

We went to Woodruff Park with about 25 volunteers. We were handing out bottles of water, chips, and striking up conversations with anyone who wanted to talk. Dona and I saw several familiar faces from SafeHouse so we were ecstatic! We made new friends of course, had several fun conversations, learned to play chess, played spades, and got kicked out of a section by security!! Apparently Woodruff park has tables/sections designated for certain activities...with card playing being across the street! Thankfully, one of the security guards let us set up an extra table across the street, so we were able to play a good round of cards.

Towards the end of the afternoon Dona and I hung out in the park with some of our friends and were soon stranded in the park in the pouring rain! We ran for cover, got covered in sand and other grime that was blowing around, then did some strategic walking back to the car.

Since we were already downtown, we ended our evening at SafeHouse. Our same friends from the park were there, so of course we had to challenge each other to another round of spades (this is becoming our routine). There was some good trash talking - I'm also learning how to stop being nice and engage in trash talk during a card game - and some great laughs!

We both really enjoyed our day of giving, or rather our day of hanging out with friends!

Day 182

It was an evening of chaos at SHO tonight!

Chandni and I were both at work, and we were running a little late! Thank goodness for all our friends and family who'd volunteered with us tonight and made it there before hand! Between Kid, Hema, and the rest of Chandni's family, they'd brought sandwiches; Kim Braund from Nationwide brought a cooler full of sodas!
While we'd prepared for Game Night, as we'd been announcing all week, things didn't go quite as planned.

Due to a little miscommunication, there were 2 groups serving clients at SHO tonight. Us and another church group.

I won't lie, the disappointment creeped in because we were excited about getting our group together and getting sooooooo much accomplished in just 10 days amongst our little circle of friends and family; but as the night progressed we slowly got back into the groove of things and began to do what we came out there to do. Have fun and socialize with our SafeHouse friends with no strings attached for them to be served.

The guys had to have moved tables back and forth about 4 times, but we finally got it together and got the spades game going! Chandni and Kid brought checkers, and there were different tables playing checkers too!

Raksha had a blast leading the bingo games inside, and our friends were happy to receive prizes!

Oh and, Chandni's little buddy was there! Flocked by lovely ladies wanting to play with him, and he just loved the attention!

It was a wonderful night, after all.
It was so exciting to see our friends reach out to our friends at SHO and step up to do whatever it took to ensure the night unfolded without a hitch.
I'm always moved when I see my friends support us in making Project 365 happen.
They didn't come out there because they had an incentive, nor did we have to ask them twice for their aid.
Everyone gave and gave freely, and I'm moved beyond words... Almost to tears.

It's always fun watching our friends at SHO unwind, kickback, and relax with us. Talk to us, give us insight into their life experiences, and always make us laugh!

Thank you everyone for everything!!!
Thank you Kid, Guy, Hema, Mickey, Shrayo, Prashant, Raksha, Vishal, Vick, Kurt, Kim, Kenny, AJ, Becca, Tim(enya), LaBlanc and the rest of our fabulous volunteers that made tonight a great night!
Thank you Sapna, Shashin, P-Man, HP, and Kid's friend for donating ALL the food - you guys are awesome and we could not have done this without your help.
Thank you SafeHouse for the opportunity to give back.
Thank you Friends at SHO for having us, and letting us serve you!

Have a good night, and a Happy Fourth of July weekend!