Ruby G-2/8/10-HUC-1st.visit
Instead of going to the Village Temple, I decided to go to the organization that Julian is going to, Hebrew Union College (HUC).
What the organization does:
“The student-run HUC-JIR Soup Kitchen welcomes over 100 homeless and hungry guests for a nutritious meal. In autumn, winter and spring we serve a hot meal – main course, side dish, bread, fruit, peanut butter, jelly, cookies, milk, juice and coffee – and after the second semester we serve take-out sandwiches, fruit, and something to drink. Volunteers from around the New York area – secondary school pupils, college students, and adults – help us prepare and serve the meals. The Soup Kitchen offers our guests not only meals but also free legal counseling by NYU Law School students, free clothing, and toiletries, as well as a sewing service.”
From 4-6, Julian and Taliana and I helped serve the hungry. They start at 3 and end at 6:30 but you are open to begin and leave whenever. There were several other teenagers volunteering, just like Village Temple. At first I was a little skeptical considering it was my first visit and I didn’t know much about it. Unlike the Village Temple, we would also be serving. Before the dinner begun, all of the volunteers had a meeting. The lady talked about how you don’t need to have a conversation with any of the people, but it makes it makes the experience more interesting for you. You will get more out of it. Once we started serving, it was very laid back.
We first placed salad, spinach & other vegetables, and macaroni and cheese on plates and set them on tables. Once the people arrived, everyone was assigned a task. My task was to hand out tangerines. After that was done, there wasn’t a set task. You would basically just go around the room and ask if anyone needs anything.
Compared to Village Temple, I feel that I had a better experience at HUC. Instead of just preparing food, I also served it. This made me understand the whole purpose of the organization. I also enjoyed HUC because the adults that lead the soup kitchen are more interested in getting to know you. Some of the women there asked where we went to school. When they heard that we went to LREI, they knew some kids that went there. I had more personal connections at this organization.
I plan to continue volunteering at this organization as well as Village Temple (Saturday mornings) on Mondays.