I had the pleasure of being a part of the Communications Committee for Harvest House V this year.
For the 6 months leading up to the event, I was able to get to know all about how wonderful the United Way and Harvest House really is! For that, I want to thank Pat Terrisovic, Volunteer Center Director, Valley United Way.
What is Harvest House?
Harvest House is a bi-Annual event hosted by the Valley United Way's Corporate Volunteer Council. 2013 marked the 5th event, or the 10th year. Over 1 million meals had already been provided to local food banks thanks to the first 4 events!
A 400 square foot "house" is constructed under the Rotory Pavilion at the Veteran's Memorial Park in Shelton. Some wonderful students from Emmett O'Brian Technical High School came on Friday to set up the house in preparation for the volunteers who came on Saturday (Sept 29th) morning to fill the house with approximately 100,000 cans of food.
Volunteering
I was happy to be 1 of the 250+ volunteers who arrived at 8AM on Saturday the 29th to help fill the shelves of the house. It is hard to explain the emotions a volunteer for this project feel. It it amazing to be a part of so many neighbors, friends, and community members to do something so big and important.
By the end of the day (I was there until 8PM), I was still excited, happy, grateful, proud, and just a little sore!
Here is how the day broke down:
Saturday
8:00: arrive and start getting organized with the other volunteers
10:30-11: Finish stuffing the shelves with the donated food! Ahead of schedule
12:00 - 1: lunch
1:00-6PM:Free events throughout the day, including hula hoop, face painting, Beardsley Zoo animals, moon bounces, and more
6:30-8:00: Finding Nemo movie
Sunday 9AM-4:00PM
Events throughout the day included Zumba with Studio V Fitness, Cantastic Canstructions, a magic show, and Center Stage performances.
Learn More
If you would like to view more photos, check out the photo albums on the Valley United Way website.
This event won't be back until Fall 2015, but there are still tons of opportunities to get involved in the community. A really easy way to find opportunities is to check out The Volunteer Center page.
