We did so much today and it. was. awesome. We have all of our accomplishments listed on the white board in our admin board room, and getting to see the list grow longer and longer feels really awesome!
Our day started again with some really tasty pancakes again, thanks to Chef Chen, and some other good food. A leisurely breakfast leads to a great day, which is said more eloquently in a nice quote that I don't have WiFi to look up. Shout out to dad Ben for bringing 10 pounds of pancake mix and his entire kitchen.
We headed to the administration building at 9 to get started. Half of us headed to the food shed around back to sort canned goods, boxes of cereal and the like, check of expiration dates, organize by flavor and more. The other half headed to the board room to sort auction items for the gala and work on websites, email lists, infographics and logistics.
We took a break to help serve a hearty lunch of rice, pork, broccoli, egg soufflé and more. It's nice to be able to do so many different things here and then to be able to sit down for a break and talk to the residents. We heard some great stories today about their lives, their time at the Inn and whether according to philosophy if the tables were actually real or not.
After lunch, we headed back to our stations at the shed and the board room. After another successful shed clean-up, everyone headed back to the board room to work together. Two of us got to work at the thrift shop Inn Style and see how they organize their clothing and furniture donations. The rest of us continued with some small tasks for Cara, gala inventory and design projects.
We ended our work at the admin building with a quick Sonic shake break and then headed off to another great dinner with the residents (and cheesecake).
After dinner we hosted a College 101 meeting. Some of the residents came and got to ask us about college life, the application process and financial security. We got to answer a lot of great questions and hear about the residents' dream jobs, which are all awesome. They had a lot of inspiring and enthusiastic things to say, and we couldn't have been more happy to share all of our favorite parts about Mizzou and our other undergraduate universities (ahem: MAB).
We're ending the night now with a group chat (bonding is at an all-time high) and some movies. We can't wait to see what's in store for tomorrow with the administrators and residents (and hopefully a forecast of over 40 degrees - Texas, what's up with that?)
Here are some group highlights from our day:
Kelsey: I got to do shed organizing and then design stuff, which is what I really like, and then talk at college night. We got to share our experience and it wasn't pretentious in any way. It was very much an open conversation between everyone. I think the introductions helped. I got to learn things about you all (participants) that I didn't know before too.
Ben: I learned today that I don't want to donate canned goods again. You can turn a dollar into anything and you can't do that with sweet corn. So much goes to waste and it's the struggle of parents wanting their kids to be able to pick out the corn and deliver it and the physical process of it. Coming up with ways around that is essentially what I want to do. Donate your birthday!
Chen: I really enjoyed this college night. I was worried about the kids being too shy. But I think the college night is a way to help improve that and help them be more open.
Laura: It was nice to feel like an expert and like we could do something to help them during college night. I'm not great at organizing food sheds, but I felt like I was useful during this. They really opened up.
Ditto what Kelsey said.
It's nice to get to know each other better and the residents as well. To have those reoccurring conversations.
Tifanesha: I really enjoyed today. I really enjoy data entry. It's really weird. I like filling in different roles.
I really enjoyed the college night. It was a breath of fresh air. You see how people tick by learning what they want to do.
Natalie: I really enjoyed doing busy work today. Making lists is my true forte. Sometimes, you have to take a step back and realize that all the little things are what in full help make the organization tick and run efficiently. They just have to get done.
It was also really nice to speak with residents about the college process today. Seeing one of the little girl's faces light up when we told her she could pick her own dorm room really shows that just a conversation can make a difference.
Chuka: Watching you guys this evening talking about college and how to get there was pretty awesome. I remember conversations I had when adults came to class when I little and it was really helpful. This might be a turning point for one of those kids lives.
It felt good to finish the shed and close the door.
My low was stacking cans in the cold. This is my first winter. It gets worse everyday. I think after now I'll survive any winter (group sighs)
Sabrina: I really liked college night. There was a lot of deep insight. Tifanesha really knew what to say to them during the first questions.
*Insert extremely precious compliments between Sabrina and Chuka and their awesome inforgraphic work together* TEAMWORK
Mikeita: I had lunch with some really interesting boys. They were philosphers. We had really good conversation and they kept me rolling the whole hour. I think they feel a connection with me and that's cool. It's a fun group of people. I'm excited to spend the rest of the week with them.
I bought a wallet from the thrift store we worked at today. It's super stylish. It's Inn Style.
All the people who work at non profits are really energetic. (Sabrina: Like dad and mom! - aka Ben & Kelsey)
#Mikeita #TrendingTopic
Erin: I bonded with a resident over a mystic animal T-shirt and at dinner he showed up with another one so we could have another conversation.
It's good to start not feeling like a stranger as we get to know the residents.
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