This is it! The food packing weekend is here!

BonaResponds (Photo credit: Bona_Responds)

This is it! The 100,000 food packing weekend is here! We have almost 300 volunteers signed up (please honor your commitments! ) 
 
We are still a few thousand dollars short on the money side, so if you want to buy t-shirts etc (or just make a donation) tomorrow that would be great too!
Remember it is in the Richter Center (right next to Reilly Center on the Bonaventure campus). Come in the NORTH doors (on the side closest to Rt 417 (away from the soccer fields).

A few random things about the day:

* Remember we are making meals: so please be clean. Hair nets will be provided.

* People will be given jobs from labeling bags, scooping foods, carrying more food to the work stations, packing, packing boxes, and moving pallets. ALL are needed. Remember every job is important and without each the process breaks down.

* Strive for speed and efficiency (THINK!) but also have fun. 100,000 meals is a big number and we only have three production shifts. So we need over 33K meals each 2 hours. Given the start of each shift is a video introduction, we will REALLY HAVE TO HUSTLE!

* Feed My Starving Children ( Feed My Starving Children) is a great great group! They will be making the decision where the food goes but where ever it goes I am sure it will be very needed. They have shipped over 244 million meals to Haiti so there is a very good chance the meals will go there.

* If anyone would like to make a video of the day, that would be beyond great! Here is a video of the last one: http://vimeo.com/19173857

* PLEASE show up 15 minutes (or more) prior to your shift to get a name tag and sign in. Again with such a tight production schedule we can not afford to lose work time with forms etc. (you can speed the process somewhat by printing and filling out the waiver form in advance. It is here: http://bonaresponds.org/forms/br-waiver-new.pdf

Finally and most importantly, this will be a great day. We are honored to have you work with us to make the world a bit better. We encourage you to remember that this is just one way that BonaResponds strives to "Change the world" and we'd love you to stay around and help us on a regular basis. It is great fun and you will be doing great work!

THANKS EVERYONE! We look forward to seeing you all on Saturday!



(with apologies to the old Kenny Loggins' song)

Food Packing "Press" release: BonaResponds looking for help to feed 100,000 meals

Want to help make 100,000 meals?  BonaResponds would love your help in doing just that this Saturday March 22..  The  Bonaventure based volunteer organization that is most known for local jobs and disaster response trips is teaming up with Feed My Starving Children to make 100,000 meals but they need a total of 300 volunteers to pack and ship these meals.

This is the second time that the group has undertaken a food packing like this.  The first was after the 2010 earthquake in Haiti.  “The 2010 event was great.  It was fun, successful, and  we made over 113,000 meals,” said Jim Mahar the founder and leader of BonaResponds. “It is really a great opportunity to help others without ever having to leave Western New York” added Olean’s Reed McElfresh a BonaResponds volunteer and graduate business student at St. Bonaventure.  

“Planning for this food packing event started back in the fall after the Typhoon hit the Philippines.  We had hoped to make 200,000 meals but even at only 22 cents a meal, the cost adds up and we were unable to raise enough money do we had to settle on 100,000 meals.  We have not quite made it to the $22,000 cost but we are confident we will” said Greg Faughnan a senior chemistry major and BonaResponds student leader.  

Senior Chemistry major Nick Turgeon explained that BonaResponds does not know exactly where the meals go, but that they trust the Feed My Starving Children people.  “They feed millions of people a week around the world.  They are a great group and excellent to work with.”

“Personally I hope the meals go to Haiti” said Lilly Whelan a senior math major.  “I was one of several volunteers who worked in Haiti over Christmas break and I fell in love with the people.  They have so little but were always willing to help us.  Whether the exact meals that we make go there or not, I am glad we can be helping people in need.”

 

The work day is broken into three two-hour shifts (9-11, 11:30 to 1:30, and 2-4) and is open to all who would like to help.  “Young or old, everyone can help some and we’d love to have you work with us” Mahar finished.  

Volunteers under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.  Volunteers are asked to sign up at BonaResponds.org.  Volunteers should arrive 30 minutes early to sign in and to get “trained”.

The group is also still accepting donations to cover the cost of the meals as well as many of their local projects.  Donations can also be made via BonaResponds.org or mailed to BonaResponds. Box BY, St. Bonaventure NY 14778.

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