Continuing my goal of volunteering for 12 new organizations this year, I tagged along to an event that she learned of through her Kiwanis connections. She described it as a back to school party, where backpacks filled with school supplies would be given away to families in need.
Admittedly I had only a surface notion of the event, but I had done charity work on a few occasions such as serving a meal for 60 or so people at the Safe Harbor homeless shelter. When we showed up at ISU's Horton Fieldhouse I expected that we'd be tucked away in one of their underground gymnasiums. But as we walked into the large fieldhouse we saw tables, smelled concessions, and saw a hundred people milling about. These were just the volunteers - over 175 in all.
Though our names weren't officially registered, we were swiftly assigned to security detail. The idea of security seemed funny to me at a non-alcoholic event where the most stressful aspect (in my mind) was the risk of gleeful faces tearing in half from oversmiling at the sight of 5,000 donated backpacks.
Then I looked outside.
Have you ever seen a line 1,000 people long?
It was a pretty tame gig. I fielded several complaints from people who'd been standing in line for an hour, then seen someone cut in line with their friends ahead of them. But civil decency prevailed overall. The toughest aspect was being on our feet for two hours in the hot afternoon sun. But it was worth it. In all, some 1,600 backpacks were given out. This was a true community effort of about 15 local businesses teaming up for a common cause. The good feeling of accomplishment made me feel like I was the one being served!
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