Day 2
"If someone tries to tell you that one person can't change the world, send them to Saint Jude."
These were the wise words spoken by our tour guide, Mr. Ken Phillips. The phrase stuck with our MAB family, and continued to be an overarching theme for our first day of volunteering at the hospital.
Our day began before the sun even rose as we cut through an early morning basketball practice in our PJs, embracing the stares from curious high schoolers. We stopped for breakfast and then drove to St. Jude for a tour of the hospital. This is where we met our insightful tour guide, Mr. Phillips, a volunteer who displayed an extreme passion for the work St. Jude is doing for pediatric diseases. He showed us around the hospital, explained in-depth all the services that St. Jude provides for the families and told us about the groundbreaking research going on each day inside the building.
After the tour, we invaded the St. Jude kitchen in order to prepare a meal for 150 people living at the Tri Delta Place, which is a free housing facility located next to the hospital for patients and families. We threw on some aprons and hair nets and began cooking our pasta feast which included: 20 pounds of noodles, several gallons of sauce, 16 pounds of beef, 200 garlic dinner rolls, and 300 cookies. We had a blast, and now we basically consider ourselves expert cooks. We're expecting a phone call from local restaurants any day now.
We set out the meal and started serving the families their dinner. This is where Mr. Phillip's quote really struck a chord with our group. With only seven days to serve at St. Jude, it can be difficult to feel like you are really making a difference in the lives of those within the community. But it's the little things that can make someone's day.
For example, a mother and daughter taking extra time out of their day to thank us for preparing food so they didn't need to go out in the cold to eat after a long day; or a mother thanking one of our group members because her daughter hadn't eaten in days but had finished off her entire plate of spaghetti.
It was these moments that were just a small aspect of our very full day that made those families' days just a little bit easier. These are the moments that we will hold onto as we take our service home to Mizzou.
"If someone tries to tell you that one person can't change the world, send them to Saint Jude."
Keep It Beale
Memphis 3
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