Many people in my local community of Frederick, MD suffer from food insecurity. This problem has increased because of the global COVID pandemic. Globally, many refugee communities have been suffering because of the COVID pandemic, as well.
I committed to collecting food donations for the Maryland Food Bank to help improve my local community, as well as challenged my friends, family, and neighbors to make a pledge to support International Rescue Committee for each hour I work.
My goal was to volunteer at least one hour per week from October 2020 - October 2021, and I have more than met that goal! I collected over 100 bags of food for the Maryland food bank and raised $1000 dollars to benefit the IRC. My mom helped to drive me around the neighborhood to drop off empty bags and collect full ones and also drive me to the Frederick Food Bank to drop off the donations. Sometimes kids in my neighborhood saw what I was doing and offered to help drop off or pick up bags with me.
The mission of the IRC is to help people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover, and gain control of their future. It is one of the leading organizations supporting the refugees in Lesvos, Greece, the island on which my much loved and dearly missed Yiayia (grandma) was born and grew up. Yiayia passed away in January 2020, and I collected donations for IRC in her memory. Through this project, I learned to connect the needs of people in my community to those of refugees around the world.
I did two rounds of collections in my immediate neighborhood over the course of the year. I would like to expand to reach more families in my community to collect donations and maybe involve more of my friends.
Dropping off the donations. I felt a huge sense of accomplishment.
Don't let your age stop you from finding a way to help! The reason I did the food collection is because I was too young to volunteer officially for the food bank. You have to be 16 in my area to volunteer directly for the food bank or its meal preparation program, Community Table.
