Erin ready to climb in Joshua Tree, the stop after LA
As the Service Bus caravan entered Los Angeles, we were struck with the realization that it was early afternoon and that meant one thing: bumper-to-bumper traffic that we collectively forgot comes with this maze of a city. We were due to volunteer at The Midnight Mission in a northern neighborhood of Los Angeles infamously named ‘Skid Row’.
All I knew about the project was that we were going to help serve one of the three meals that The Midnight Mission provides every day for homeless folks on Skid Row. I was surprised to walk in and find high vaulted ceilings, beautiful photographs of Los Angeles lining the walls, and Joey, dressed in button up shirt and tie to take us on a tour of the building. We always love learning more about the places we do service, and the tour was everything we could have hoped for. Joey explained how the Midnight Mission had been in existence and serving food to people on Skid Row for 100 years, and currently housed 200 men that chose to enter their rehabilitation program. As it turned out, the well-dressed, personable and enthusiastic Joey was himself a participant in the rehab program, and had been sober for eight months when we met him.
Service Bus Volunteers ready to feed folks at The Midnight Mission
None of us quite knew what to expect in terms of what it would be like to serve food to homeless people. I for one had trepidations about knowing what to say or how to interact with people that come from such a different background than my own. They all began to file in and created two long lines through the cafeteria hall to receive their meal. On today’s menu was rice, beans, fish, canned corn, whole wheat bread, and yogurt, with their choice of either milk or fruit punch. Some were chatting excitedly with friends, some were simply staring at the ground, but what they all had in common was that they knew exactly where to go to form the lines and what the procedure was; they had all been there before, and some of them had probably been coming for three meals a day for years.
My job was to receive their trays in the back of the cafeteria when they were done eating, clear the extra food into the trash and put the silverware, cup and tray into their respective bins. Didn’t seem too difficult. I tried to thank everyone that handed me their tray, and I received a variety of reactions from blank stares as they dropped their tray onto the table, to some folks cleaning their own tray for me and saying a heartfelt “God Bless” with a thank you. I think the most surprising part for our group of volunteers was that many of the folks we served we never would have guessed that they were homeless based on how they held themselves and how they were dressed.
It was an eye-opening experience for us all, and certainly a comfort zone stretcher for me personally. I walked away with an immense appreciation for the consistent and much-needed service that The Midnight Mission provides on a daily basis. I was also beyond impressed and grateful that there are non-profits out there, like The Midnight Mission, that are thriving and able to support participants like Joey and the hundreds of other people on Skid Row that suffer from hunger and addiction on a daily basis. The Service Bus had entered Los Angeles, and we all felt we understood a bit more about a very real and unglamorous side to the City of Angels.
The Service Bus Expedition 2014 was ground-breaking opportunity for Outward Bound California staff and instructors to “live the values” of Outward Bound by volunteering their time and energy to improve the communities where we live and work. On their 45-day west coast road trip, instructors tackled both wilderness and urban service projects, ventured out together on professional development opportunities, and did some marketing and outreach to grow the visibility of Outward Bound across California. Read more about their adventures and their overall impact here.
Want to be involved in volunteer opportunities throughout California and on a monthly basis in San Francisco? Learn how here.
