by Tom Froehlich-Oakland, CA
The Labor of Love Weekend at Project Volunteer a few weeks ago drew some loving and dedicated Unificationists to the warehouse in Oakland. That invaluable help definitely needs to be recognized publicly. On behalf of the Board of Directors and myself I would like to express to all our gratitude for past, present and continuous support. Having recently attended various community building meetings with the City of Oakland and certain funding organizations, I found that Project Volunteer has a distinct reputation in the entire Bay area as an emergency services organization. PV is such a great way to communicated Unification ideas through actions to the public. Let me encourage all of you volunteers to feel "original" pride in being part of such a humble and yet noble endeavor.
That weekend we accomplished several tasks. We began cleaning up the front and back yard. Weed Wackers ate through most of the weeds and grasses with great ease. A group of about ten kids raked all of the cuttings together and gathered them in garbage bags. We painted the front door anew, and prepared the front facade for a new spray coat. We cleaned the inside walls of the large refrigerator, and scrubbed the kitchen stove. We painted one of the rest rooms, and we painted one of the offices and installed a new carpet.
Special recognition goes to: Pastor Thompson, who provided the funds for the carpet from the HSA account; Garry Barker, who left his gas- operated Weed Wacker at PV for continuous use; Bobby Burton, who bought semi gloss to paint walls; Jan DeGoede, who brought all of his professional tools to put the carpet down; James Brooks, who blew bits and pieces of dirt off the ground and into garbage bags with his gas- powered blower; and Greg Dishman, who came in Sunday first in the morning and left last in the evening.
The following is a list of all the wonderful people who came that weekend to volunteer: Garry Barker, James and Angela Brooks, Bobby Burton, Nick Buscovich, Nick Chiaia and friend, Jan DeGoede, Greg Dishman, Kim Dodge, Steve Dufour, Ken Hardman, David Rosenblum, Michael and Toshiko Wildman, and many kids of whose names I have no recollection anymore.
Truly, Project Volunteer needs ongoing support. Besides a volunteer coordinator, I am also looking for a few persons who could make simple phone calls to charities and food companies, all for about half a day per week. This is a fun job, but these volunteers must have good phone manner! Anyone who is interested please call me at (510)562-0291. We will have some more Labor of Love Days with barbecue and ice cream in the near future. Together, we can make a difference!
Reprinted from American Neighborhood.