Actually, I have done something like this before, though it was something that required much more emotional strength. How could I forget that... Summer 2005, when Galveston, TX, hosted thousands of evacuees and refugees from New Orleans, victims of the devastating Katrina hurricane, who filled our giant local shelter, hopeless, homeless, and with nothing but the clothes they had on. I volunteered my time during several weekends and did whatever the American Red Cross told me to do that day, which ranged from counseling, to paperwork, to babysitting, to answering questions and giving prepaid phone cards, etc. Many times I had to look strong and park my emotions for a while, waiting until I got in the car, on my way home, to release them.
Going to the Food Bank was a totally new experience for me, which I have repeated 8 times now. My boyfriend, now my husband, Rich, is a Team Leader, and has been doing it for about 10 years. Although, in terms of time, when I ask Richie how long ago he went to a place, or he met someone, or did something, it is very likely that the margin of accuracy oscillates by two to five years before or after the date in question. So, when he told me 10 years, it can easy be something between 8 and 12 years, since he started volunteering. This point clear, I will proceed to describe the experience itself. When you get there, everybody smiles at you, making you feel welcome, needed, and appreciated. Then you sign in, get your name tag, and wait till they assign you a leader -I always go with Rich.
When the whole group is gathered and people have been assigned to a specific area, a full time employee describes the task/s to carry out and then, like an army of organized ants, we work, talk, say thank you to our partners in labor about 50 times, and smile every time our eyes meet someone else's eyes. I always end up with a back ache when we have to empty huge bins of fruit or tuber (mainly potatoes and carrots). The directions are quick and simple: just fill plastic bags with 3 to 5 pounds of the product, for which we are given gloves. I recommend this practice to amateur meditators, like me - by focusing on one peach at a time we can free our minds from a shower of thoughts that will probably make our back pain worse.
On a few occasions the assignment requires much more attention and discipline. It amazes me how in just 2 hours, we are able to sort out so many different items, from cans, to cereal boxes, chocolate, legumes or juice. 
Everybody in the group learns what to do, and manages to walk the room, heading to their individual destinations, without crashing against another individual. You can see people assembling boxes, sealing boxes, carrying them full, taking products to the different stations... and magically, in two hours time, the whole task is accomplished as if we had been programmed with a timer.My favorite time was when we worked in, what could be called, an assembly line, perfectly coordinated, with an awesome group of people from the wedding industry, some of which I already knew. We were chatting - some of us in different languages - and laughing, and joking, and 2 hours never had gone by so fast before. I also enjoyed when my parents joined us during their visit from Spain. My mom loved the experience so much that she repeated with a smile in her face, without complaining even once about any kind of pain.
It all started last year, when Rich Amooi - my lovely husband - came up with the idea of organizing a group of people who wouldn't mind donating their time, energy and good will to help others just because. He named this group Volunteering Rocks, and by using Facebook as a means, he gathered a group of friends and acquaintances from different fields and industries to volunteer, one Wednesday evening for two hours, every now and then - a group that now has close to 100 members, and is still growing. Would you like to join us?
Silvi
