Philadelphia - Homelessness/Poverty (6)

Today was our last day in Philadelphia. It’s amazing how fast the week has gone by. We spent the day serving at SHARE Food Program. We worked with a group of High School students from Arizona, and were extremely productive. We packed boxes assembly line style, like we’ve done the past few days at SHARE; however, today with so many people, we were able to pack a LOT.

While serving at SHARE Food Program these past few days hasn’t involved working directly with the homeless population in Philadelphia (like serving the meal for the University Lutheran Church’s Feast Incarnate did), it’s important to remember that this is still benefiting people. While it might be tedious packaging boxes and doing the same thing, we’re doing a lot of good for the people at SHARE and in Philadelphia.

After serving at SHARE, some of us went out shopping. We felt a few drops of rain but thought nothing of it. We decided we wanted to go to a bakery and while we were there it started to POUR. We figured it would just get worse, so we decided to just walk/run back to our house- it was only about a mile away. We were drenched, running through the streets of Philadelphia, looking like goofs all wearing our matching MAB shirts, but I loved every second of it. THIS is what MAB is about. After serving for the week in Philadelphia, experiencing highs and lows, while it wasn't great getting caught in the rain, it was with a group that I can now call my best friends.

-Julianna 

Philadelphia - Homelessness/Poverty (5)

Today was a great day. Why? Because we got to sleep in! Okay, that's not the reason why it was a great day. It was nice to sleep in until 9 am since we were up so early yesterday. We got to SHARE Food Program at around 10:30 am to start working. Today we started outside, cleaning up leaves and debris around back, near where the garden was. It was a little tough since it was so windy! I got at least a leaf and a couple twigs in my eye. Once that was finished we went inside to continue packing boxes of food like we did yesterday. We packed at least 80 boxes of food using Taylor's new efficient method of packing. She slid down the conveyor belt grabbing cans as she went. We finished up our service in the early afternoon and got the opportunity to explore.

We got an amazing treat today, which was a tour of Independence Hall! The tour guide told us so much about the history of the building and events that happened, including the Second Continental Congress that took place in the assembly room. That's when they adopted the Declaration of Independence! There was also a ton of original maps, some dating back to the 1730's, and even an original chair that Washington himself sat in. It was such a beautiful building, and I loved learning so much about our nation's history. 

After getting our fill of national history, we took a little trip to Atlantic City. It's about an hour away from Philadelphia, and a lot colder. We walked down the boardwalk and tried riding some of the rides, but it closed by the time we got there. Julianna and Jessica got some fried Oreos (yum!) and I got a funnel cake (which the seagulls tried to steal). The three of us then went down to the beach to explore. I took my shoes off and ran into the water, which was FREEZING! After running around in the ocean and in souvenir shops, we went back to Philly for dinner. Of course, Redish and LeAundra made some delicious quesadillas and dip. After dinner some of us played a few brutal rounds of Uno. Nathan and I both got really into it. 

Overall it was a super long but rewarding day. So far this week has been an amazing experience, and I wish it didn't have to end. 

-Rachel

Today was a great day for service. Not only did we serve, but we interacted with other schools and volunteers/workers. We did a lot of “dirty work.” We helped clean up the place that, as you can see, gets pretty messy sometimes. In all honesty, something that I learned today was that serving people doesn’t limit us to people that are homeless or need help. It’s a tremendous help to them, and sometimes we fail to realize that places such as SHARE where people are fully volunteering. The workload is overwhelming because of the few volunteers.  So it was very nice to realize that we were helping them so much, and that us helping them was beneficial. Sometimes we feel that our help isn’t significant but that’s wrong. Little by little, we work toward a common goal. As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give others permission to do the same”

It was a great day for service, and it was a great day for a Philly cheesesteak. 

-Redish

Philadelphia - Homelessness/Poverty (4)

This morning we woke up at 7 AM to start getting ready for our eventful day at SHARE Food Program. We had to be there by 8:30 AM so we hurried to get ready. When we arrived, we realized we were an hour early! While waiting for the coordinators to finish their meeting, we played charades. Finally, we were directed to the back of the warehouse where we constructed 1,400 boxes to pack food in. After that we made over 200 boxes of food to be sent out to families in April. After volunteering all day we headed over to Philadelphia's Art Museum. There was so much to do there! Taylor and Julianna got their hair and makeup done 60's style, while others went around and admired the beautiful art work. We also went to the steps where the movie "Rocky" was filmed. We ran up and down the steps as they do in the movie and took lots of pictures. We also found the Rocky statue and took a very cool picture at it. After the art museum, we all were extremely tired from this long day. We came back and ate an amazing chicken Alfredo dinner cooked Taylor and Jessica. We then reflected on our busy day and went to sleep. 

-Mariah & Taylor

Philadelphia - Homelessness/Poverty (3)

“Open the doors!”

Tired, exhausted, worn-out faces of men and women poured into a church cafeteria.  Many of them regulars; some new.  They patiently waited for volunteers to serve them food from a meal cooked all day.  Many of these men and women—homeless, food insecure, or simply alone—anticipate this weekly Tuesday meal.

I cannot lie: This was a heartbreaking experience for me and some of my fellow MAB-ers.

We started preparing the meal at 9 a.m. with an eccentric man named Michael.  He oversees the Tuesday meals.  He took us to Restaurant Depot where we bought about $300 in groceries for the meal.  At around 11 a.m., we began cooking.  It wasn’t all work, though; we had the opportunity to explore the University of Pennsylvania’s (an Ivy League school) campus.  We finished cooking around 4:30 p.m., and we began serving food at promptly 5 p.m.

Serving the meal was an eye-opening opportunity.  Many of us hear about “homelessness” and “poverty,” discussed by political pundits on ideologically-biased TV shows, but rarely do we ever see it.  It humanized the terrible predicament millions of men and women face every day, and in Philadelphia, approximately one-fifth of the population faces this exact dilemma.  Something needs to be done, and I think I speak for my entire trip when I say this: We were all inspired to contribute to this change.

Helping at University Lutheran Church’s weekly Tuesday meal added depth to this trip.  And while we are having fun and bonding together, we are witnessing important social issues that need to be addressed.

-Nathan

When told we were going to be serving at Feast Incarnate I had an idea of what to expect. I knew that we were going to be encountering people who may have faced hardships or are facing hardships. I went in with a positive attitude and I had a wonderful experience. From the preparation of the meal, which involved bonding with my fellow MAB trip peers to serving the food, which was fast paced and caused us to pay attention to who we were serving. One thing I didn't realize was that people would lie in order to receive more portions even at the cost of others who hadn't even received their first. This realization shocked me because I was under the assumption that although they are reliant upon others for basic needs at times they also recognize they aren't the only ones and therefore when they receive help the help should be distributed evenly. Although this was not the case for some people, not all were like this. The compassion I felt within the room was beyond belief. The gratefulness they bestowed upon us and the happy wishes for our success made me thankful for the opportunities I know of and are blind to.

-Tori

Philadelphia - Homelessness/Poverty (2)

Monday morning, our site leaders searched for a new service place because our previous site cancelled on us the day before. We weren’t able to find a new service site, so we decided to explore Philadelphia. Everyone ate breakfast, got dressed, and prepared for our Monday adventures. We stopped at Reading Terminal Market to grab lunch. Everyone ate something different, but the people I ate with got some fantastic Cajun food. Reading Terminal Market had such a large variety of foods such as seafood, soul food, deli, Asian, desserts, and more.

We were able to see the Liberty Bell, which was great to see as the history fanatic I am. We also went to the United States Mint Department of the Treasury to see how our coins are made. Then, we made our way over to see the Betsy Ross house, the woman who created the first American flag. On the way, we passed Benjamin Franklin’s burial site. Some of our group wanted to ride bikes, so we rented the city bikes, rode as gracefully as we could, and made our way back to the house safely. Working up an appetite, for dinner, we had spaghetti, salad, and cheese bread that was very delicious! After dinner, we decided to split up. Half of the group went to grab pretzels while the other half went to grab ice cream and milkshakes at Big Gay Ice Cream. I had the Salty Pimp ice cream cone, and it was so good. We all returned back to the house to play card games and word games while having a lot of time to learn more about each other.

-LeAundra

Monday was a great time exploring Philly—it’s no wonder it’s the City of Brotherly Love. There’s a feeling of friendliness in a lot of places in the city, especially towards tourists, that I’m not used to feeling in other large cities I’ve been to. We went to lots of places, but Reading Terminal Market was by far my favorite. The vast amounts of foods from different cultures was astounding, but what was really cool were the people working the kiosks and such. I met a fascinating older woman named Margaret playing the piano because she was playing one of my favorite songs, and told her such. We got to talking and I found out that she used to be a ballerina in a large dance company in New York, but when she grew older, couldn’t dance anymore. She missed feeling like a part of the music, so she taught herself the piano. She became absorbed in it, and now plays it wherever she goes.

It’s crazy thinking about how all the people I pass on the streets, or see in places like Reading Terminal Market have their own stories and such that make them fascinating. That to me they’re just a passing face, or a person sitting at a table eating a (seriously delicious) Philly cheesesteak, but really they’re so much more. Being on this trip has really got me to think about all the little details that make up a person, and is making me curious to find out more about strangers along the way. I can’t wait to see what else this trip has to offer, and to meet more people along the way.

-Jessica

Philadelphia - Homelessness/Poverty (1)

When we all arrived at our house in Philadelphia, the homeowner shared about the house’s history. Built in 1755 and worth about $700,000, we experienced what it was like to live in an old house. It’s still in good condition, just like the rest of the city. As we got settled in our living quarters, we set out to explore the rest of the city. Various statues depicting Revolutionary era figures along with stunning architecture surround the city streets. At the end of the day, however, traditional sight-seeing was over. Our group had a mission to do.

In the evening, our group did an activity that showed how food insecurity works. One person sat at a table who was wealthy. She had a full meal in front of her. Another two ladies sat at a middle class table. They were well fed as well. The rest of the group sat on the floor. We ate rice, ham, and a loaf of bread. During the activity, we learned just how hard it is to be food insecure. 1 in 5 people in Philadelphia are living below the poverty line. This statistic is astounding. I think this activity really put me in the shoes of these individuals living below the poverty line. After we did this activity, we gave out the remaining food to a few men and women standing in front of a church on the streets of Philadelphia. They were waiting outside the church on Easter Sunday for the building to open at 8:45 a.m. the next morning. Seeing these people struggle really hit me. Right then, I realized that I was a part of a much bigger mission. It redirected my mind and reminded me why I am here. I am here to serve and not help. I am excited to be able to impact so many more lives in the days to come.

-Derek

Once we got to Philadelphia we were all very relieved to settle into our beautiful housing. The car ride from Columbia was very fun and I think a lot of us started to build our friendships from the car ride alone. During the drive through Pennsylvania we decided to stop in Hershey, PA which is where the Hershey chocolate factory is. I think we all enjoyed getting to walk around the biggest Hershey chocolate store in the world, and we even got to do a free riding tour which showed us a bit about the production of Hershey chocolate products. We all came away with a sweet treat and a fun story to tell our family and friends.

Sunday was our free day so we started out early to explore the city surrounding our house. Rittenhouse Square is right by our housing, which is a very pretty park situated in the heart of the city. The walk to liberty bell and independence hall is about a 10-15 minute walk from our house and the city hall, which stands taller than most of the buildings downtown. City Hall was closed so we weren’t able to go in and explore but we were able to see the awesome building from the outside. You are able to walk through the city hall building into an atrium that has exits around Philadelphia. A few of us went over and took pictures with the LOVE sign which Philadelphia is famous for. The LOVE sign signifies that Philadelphia is the city of brotherly love. When we were there a couple came up to one of us and asked if we could take a picture of them. Little did we know that the man was about to propose to his girlfriend right in front of the LOVE sign! It was really amazing and I was so glad that I got to witness a moment like that. The moment reminded me of the “This is It” principle of MAB. It was a great reminder that each and every moment on this trip is special and a lot of it is unexpected. It made me realize that moments like this happen every day but I may not always be present enough to appreciate them the way I should. I am so excited to see what other crazy/cool/amazing moments happen this week.    

-Emily