The team: Sam Ott, Helena Kooi, Whitney Snyders, Jesse Day, Aaron Cook, Kanwal Haq, Amanda Vanslyke, Alicia Webb, Felicia Greiff, Lauren Ahrens, and Kim Mooney.
Dear ASB Friends,
We left Columbia at 6 am and stopped for lunch at Lampert's Cafe in Sikeston, MO. For many of us, this was our first experience at Lampert's and we had a blast! Lampert's is famous for its huge portions and "thrown" rolls….yes servers literally walk around and throw hot bread at you. After lunch, we drove straight to Birmingham with the exception of a stop at a gas station in Tupelo, Mississippi (Elvis' birthplace!). When we arrived at St. Francis (the church where we are staying), we were greeted by Father Paul. Father Paul is a Nigerian priest with the most contagious laugh and some super legit handshakes. After settling into our apartment and eating our leftovers from lunch, we loaded up the vans again and went grocery shopping. The night ended with a movie and a good night sleep for everyone.
On Sunday, Helena, Whitney, and Kim went to mass at St. Francis. The service was beautiful and the congregation was very welcoming. At the end, Father Paul introduced us to the church and we got the opportunity to meet a ton of great people. Back at the apartment, Sam and Jesse made breakfast before the group headed downtown and walked around Kelly-Ingram Park, a park next to the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. We were really impressed by the Civil Rights Institute, but since we were scheduled to work at a fundraiser with Birmingham AIDS Outreach at 2 pm, we vowed to come back later in the week.
The fundraiser was at a venue in downtown Birmingham called "The Furnace." Some people passed out beads and red ribbon stickers at the front door while others worked as stage crew and moved equipment for the jazz band. We were also in charge of keeping things clean and generally being on hand to lift what ever needed lifting and carry whatever needed carrying. We worked hard but had a great time! Some of our favorite parts of the day included sampling some "pra-lines" from a chef with the New Orleans Cooking School. We also loved watching the Birmingham Sugar Babies perform. The Sugar Babies are a dance group of women 55 and older.
We are looking forward to working at AIDS Alabama tomorrow!
P.S. Photos and videos coming tonight!
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