Feed My Starving Children

   If you live in the Twin Cities are and are looking for volunteer opportunities, check out Feed My Starving Children.
  FMSC is a Christian based organization that packs meals that are nutritionally sound for shipment to countries where food is not plentiful. They pair up with humanitarian organizations to distribute the food. Food makes everything else possible. A child that has little access  to nutritious food cannot thrive. They can't go to school and they will not be able to make a difference in their countries of origin.  Their belief, correct in my opinion, is that this basic need must be met first. Then other things are possible.
  We are lucky in the Twin Cities area to have three permanent FMSC packing sites. This is where the meals are put together and shipped. The food is packed by volunteers who sign up for packing sessions. My friend, Mari,took me to one recently.
  The first thing you are given is a hairnet. You are going to be working with food and this is a rule. There is a large room where all the people who have come to the session sit. You watch a couple of videos on the mission of FMSC. Have a tissue handy if you cry easily. The next thing is a video on how to pack things. It shows the steps and jobs that need to be done to pack the food. The group  works at a table.  There are people who measure out the food using scoops and cups. They put the food ( there is an order that this is done in) into a seal-able plastic bag held by another person. Once the food is in the bag, the bag is weighed to make sure that it is in the weight limits. The bag is then put in a bin so that another person can press the air out of the bag and seal it shut. Then the bags are placed on a table. Once 36 bags are finished they are boxed. Every time there is enough to box the table lets out a cheer to let everyone know that a box is being packed.
  The employees get a few people to work in the warehouse and the rest of the group goes to pack. Everyone finds a table and a job that they can do. Children are allowed to volunteer, but are limited to certain jobs.  Once everyone is in place the packing begins. Music is played and shouts fill the air. I imagine it can get kind of competitive, each table trying to pack the most boxes. Once everyone gets the hang of what they are supposed to do, if they are new people like me, things go pretty fast. There's a lot of moving around. I wouldn't recommend a thick sweater, it's warm in the packing room.
   The amazing things is how fast it goes. You are packing for an hour and 20 minutes. You'd think that it would get boring after awhile as you are doing the same thing over and over again, but you don't. You can talk to the other people who are working with you. You cheer every time your table has a box to pack. Before you know it the 10 minute warning is called and then the last minute countdown while you rush to get a couple more meals packed. Then it's over.
   Everyone stands by a wall while cleaning instructions are given. All the food is swept off the tables and the floor. It's given to farmers to feed pigs. Since the food is paid for by donors there is a great effort to make sure that little goes to waste.
  Once the cleaning is done and the packing room is set up for the next session, everyone goes back into the large assembly room. You can sample a bit of what you packed if you want. There are more stories (get your tissues out). Then they put up the numbers. They show you how many meals were packed in the session and how many children those meals will feed. They show the cost of what was packed. They talk about ways to donate. You can give money or you can buy things they have for sale. The items for sale are made by artisans in the countries that get food. Half the money goes to the artist the other half buys more food. It's a good thing for all concerned.
  If you want, you can go back to the warehouse to pray of the newly packed food. It sits on a pallet wrapped in shrink wrap. Everyone puts their hand on the pallet or any nearby boxes of food and prays for the safety of the food over the various modes of transportation. The recipients are prayed for the volunteers are prayed for and gratitude is expressed that we can give of our excess. For me it was very moving.
  If you live someplace where the are permanent sites go. Check out the website for mobile sites and other ways to help.  If you are shy, bring a friend with you. Once you are done, you will feel really good about yourself and the fact that you helped save lives and make a future possible for someone who may not have one otherwise.