Soup at Spaulding
I was lucky enough to have Soup at Spaulding contact me and ask me to present for the homeless project.
I was able to present on Thursday December 2, 2010 and I was so happy so many amazing people showed up; Faith, Ro and Rachael., Nick and Jess, Dondo, Vicky, Ken and Babs, Anthony and his son Max, Harry R, Chrissie and Garrett, Tuka, Chris and Kim Castell, Tom Nordane and his wife and a bunch more I didn’t know and some faces i recognized from the first time i went.
I knew I had 3 minutes to prep speak and so the day before I wrote up my little speech I had recited it Breedlove and Faith and felt confident it sounded good though a little worried I may get teared up.
Dinner started at 7pm…a lovely squash soup and salad with Avalon bread and hot tea. At 8 is when the people there to pitch there cause are presented to the audience.
Well the person who was supposed to present with me didn’t show up..so I got to pitch mine alone. Which is a weird feeling I must admit, cuz your like well I guess I win by default and well I hope people don’t feel gipped they don’t get a choice. But then I found out. that it didn’t mean I won automatically as anyone had the option to vote to have the money roll over to the next week. So..the competition was on…oi!
This is what I had prepared so I was allowed to read it cuz normally you are not allowed to have anything with you but they figured it was ok…
Hi! Thanks for coming and supporting this awesome event for Spaulding Court! Thank you for allowing me to present! I am honored and humbled to be here.
My name is doxie or danielle….. and I would like to talk about the Back Pack Project for the homeless I am involved in where items are given directly to the people on the streets.
4 years ago I started to see homeless under the bridges on the highways in Detroit and it made me realize I had too much stuff, don’t we all. So I started to fill my car with blankets and food and my clothes and my dads clothes I still had ..then I would stop and take items to the people who I started to call highway men. I soon ran out of stuff so I started to ask friends and family for donations and their stuff and now I bug anyone and everyone! (all eyes on you!).
In 2008 I started a chapter of Burners without Borders- a civic arm of Burning Man that helps where we see a need in our communities …I see that need in Detroit with the homeless.
Then when Ro asked her family 2 yrs ago to give her stuff to help me instead of xmas gifts she created backpacks full of items she was given- how Selfless and genius! I love you!
Now after asking people on the streets what They need we fill more & more packs with things like; hats, gloves, socks and socks and socks, hand warmers, canned protein (fish, meat beans) and veggies, and can openers of course- along with soft granola bars, (imagine no teeth- food needs to be soft) juice and water…then we tie blankets to the bags with scarves.
Then I hit the streets and look for people who don’t go to shelters for whatever reason and there are many! I also keep clothes and coats in my car too to give out if people need them. I am not trying to get anyone off the streets I don’t have that skill set. I am just trying to help out anyone I can with a backpack filled with supplies, compassion and non-judgment to make a night on the streets a little easier.
I blog about most of my adventures so people can see what happens to the donations they give me. …and here is where I hope you can help me in any way you can Because I can NOT do what I do without the help of people like YOU!
Thank you.
And of course I cried my eyes out…I should not have looked at Ro but I did and I dropped my box. I told the audience I am very attached to this project and sometimes I get that that can be not a great thing.
Then I tried to sit down but I was called back up for questions which I had planted Faith and Ro with one each in case I forgot what to say but since I read from my sheet I was ok..
Well then Harry asked me a question about other ways I raise money…which lead to me getting embarrassed and talking about the Dirty Show and how I raise money there!!
And I got to answer about 3 or 4 more questions then people were allowed to vote.
I am happy to say the vote was unanimous and everyone elected to support the homeless cause! I was very pleased. I then told everyone that a bunch of us were going over to the Mars Bar in Hamtramck and to met us for drinks.
It was a good night… and I got to talk to the owner and he told me any time I would like to use his place to just ask…I told him he had no idea what he just got himself into!!
As I was looking up something today I saw this post someone put on Yelp about the Mars Bar from the evening. I met the guy…and I am glad he had a good time!
One review for The Mars Bar
http://www.yelp.com/biz/the-mars-bar-hamtramck
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