This past month I went to Outside Lands at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. I got off Bart at Civic Center and I caught the shuttle at Bill Graham Auditorium, and what I saw was shocking. There were so many Homeless people surrounding this area, it broke my heart. Some of them were selling items, just to get by. So on the last day of Outside Lands I prepared lunches and gave them out before heading to the concert. On October 18, 2015, you can join LENT to feed the people of San Francisco. More Information to come.
Last Saturday, August 29, LENT held their first ever "LENT Event" in the Monterey Peninsula. This event was small but nonetheless made a huge impact on the community and those in need. All together we gave out 30 meals, Women Packs, Granola Bars, Wet Wipes, and Bottled Water. We connected with people, had conversations, and hopefully made their day a little brighter. One woman in particular asked one of the volunteers "if we were angels".
As of Saturday LENT has officially passed out 101 sandwiches to those in need in the Bay Area and Monterey County. After the event Saturday, my father saw a couple outside of Safeway waiting for the Recycle place to open so they could turn in their bottles and cans for money. The man never returned and my Dad told them to wait there. He came and picked up the remaining lunches from the house and went and gave them to the couple. They were so grateful and told him that they hadn't eaten since Tuesday. Could you imagine being unable to eat for five days? I would like to personally thank Bob and Diana Ingersoll, The Parga Family, and Hayley Walker for their time on Saturday morning. I would also like to thank all of our supporters who have donated this past month and a half. On average LENT spends $50-$60 on every shopping trip before a LENT event. Yesterday, we received a donation for $200. That is HUGE for us. With $200 that funds FOUR events. On average we feed 25-30 people per event. Our last event we served 30 people, if we serve 30 people at 4 events we have served 120 people. We usually buy in bulk so one shopping trip of chips, waters, granola bars, peanut butter, etc. can actually cover 1 1/2 events. So think about it! We're feeding 45 people every shopping trip. That's 180 people in the end.
As of August 30, 2015 we reached our Crowdrise goal of $600! But why stop there? Let's keep going and continue to raise funds for those in need. I asked a few weeks ago what else LENT could include or start to give out to those in need. One of the things I heard back the most was the need for Feminine Products for Women. Products like these are too expensive and most shelters do not receive them as donations. So LENT has started a "Women's pack" with some necessities for their time of the month. Right now with donations given this is what we can afford to give out. With your donation of $6-7 we can buy one box of 36 pads or 40 tampons to help 18-20 women in need. If you'd like to donate please contact me.
Women's Packs include: 2 pads, 2 tampons, 2 liners, and 1 wet wipe. Thank you for your support! |
AuthorJade Ingersoll is a student at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. She is the founder of LENT and hopes to change the world one Inspiration Meal at a time. Archives
April 2016
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