Oakland Catholic High School

Today the team divided into smaller groups and served Huntington at various organizations. The red team (group 3) spent time at Harmony house painting and organizing clothing donations. Harmony house provides shelter, housing resources and other basic life necessities to the unhoused population within Huntington and Cabell county.

Today, our groups got the opportunity to visit Faith in Action, which is an amazing local organization serving the elderly population of the greater Huntington area. 

We were warmly welcomed by Jennifer, the kind and deliberate leader in charge of the organization. She showed us around the facilities, communicating her hometown pride for the Marshall University sports teams and the interconnected community we were stepping into service with. 

Our participants listened intently to Jennifer explain the individual circumstances and needs of the men and women she is in contact with through the organization. Faith in Action services are just a call away. When the phone rings, Jennifer can expect a caller to request help reading bills, a ride to a medical appointment, assistance with grocery shopping, or simply a friendly phone call.

Today, Oakland girls and Central boys assisted Jennifer in purchasing fruit at the grocery store, which we packaged in gift sacks decorated with encouraging messages. After a quick park/lunch break, we drove to three different homes and hand delivered the gift bags filled with fruit. Each bag was received and we all enjoyed the interactions we had with the lovely people of Huntington. 

Today was a big day! We worked together to clean out a large amount of food donations from inside the freezer. With an assembly line of teamwork, we moved all the food into a nearby hallway, cleared and swept the floors, wiped down the shelves, and then carefully organized everything back inside. It was a long job, but seeing the freezer clean, sorted, and ready to serve others made it all worth it.

Today, our team visited City Missions, where we worked with Kyle and James to support their outreach efforts.

We began by sorting through clothing donations from the community. In addition to clothing, we also sorted kids' toys, dishes, and other household items. This facility provides essential items like clothes, shoes, toys, bedding, dishes, and even some decorations to individuals and families with low incomes or those experiencing homelessness, helping them find things to wear and use in their homes.

After lunch, we joined Kyle to clean up the area around the church. This included picking up trash from the grass and along the roadside, as well as clearing debris from the sidewalks.

Throughout the day, we had the chance to hear powerful stories from members of the community and volunteers at City Missions about their lives and their relationships with God. It was an inspiring and meaningful experience for all of us

Today, my group visited the home of a woman from the congregation named Mary. Sadly, Mary lost her husband last year and has since had difficulty keeping up with her yard work. As a result, her yard had become overgrown with weeds, and some of the plants had died.

Our team spent the day working hard to clean up her yard. Mary was incredibly kind and showed her appreciation by preparing a homemade lunch for us—sloppy Joes and mac and cheese, which the kids especially enjoyed.

After lunch, we got back to work pulling more weeds and pressure washing the steps and backyard. Before leaving, we gathered around Mary and prayed for her health and well-being.

Overall, today was a wonderful day filled with meaningful work, learning experiences, and a strong sense of community

Today tpart of the team has been hard at work cleaning and re-organizing the Harmony house kitchen.  This kitchen is used to prepare and store meals that are made by volunteers that are distributed to the unhoused population daily.  We took the time to wash all kitchen utensils and cookware that were then placed i. The appropriate labeled bins.  By doing this the volunteers and staff that utilize this space will know exactly where and item goes and where to find an item, making cooking and distribution of food more efficient.  Harmony house staff have expressed immense gratitude all day for the dedication of the team.

We served with a new group at Faith in Action! Jennifer joined us, and after touring the office, we were off to visit more care receivers.

Firstly, we visited Annie, a woman living in a senior living apartment. We congregated in the common area while she shared stories of her childhood in France, her family life in America, and specifically her story of caring for her son, who tragically passed from medical malpractice at the age of 18–he was comatose for over 10 years, and Annie and her daughters cared for him.

She is a strong, yet gentle and kind woman. We were happy to enjoy her company. The students enjoyed playing with her dog as well! 

We had a lakeside lunch at Barbourville Park with some volunteers. I spoke with Lois, who is a retired from a career in ESL. She serves many in the area! 

Lastly, we visited Jenny again and helped her unpack her home further.

It was another good day!

Today, my team went to Rebuild. When we arrived, Paul welcomed us and helped us get started. He shared the backstory of Rebuild and told us that the organization has been serving the community for 11 years.

Once we were oriented, we got to work. Group one filled in a large hole in the front yard with dirt, while group two raked leaves and picked up trash along the roadside. After that, we moved to the back of the property to pull weeds and continue cleaning up.

To wrap up the day, we sorted through bags of donations.

Overall, today was an amazing experience. We got a lot done

Today was full at City Mission, but it was really special. We split into two groups, some of us worked on organizing this huge pantry full of baking and cooking supplies, while the rest helped sort through clothing donations at the Donation building.

We took a long lunch break at a park, which felt like such a gift. We laughed a ton, did cartwheels and handstands in the grass, and just had fun being together.

After lunch, we got back to work and helped clean the kitchen. One of the gentlemen there was celebrating a birthday, so we brought cupcakes and sang to him. His smile and patience everyday this week has made this hard work easier.

Before we left, Kyle asked us if we could make little cards to go in the food boxes that the next team will pass out on Thursday. It felt like the perfect way to end the day, leaving a little bit of love behind for someone else to find.