Mission of Hope

The Mission of Hope has been busier than ever lately; even busier than after last year’s flood, and that’s really saying something. Supply is short and needs are long. What? What’s that you said? “Really, Dory, I had no idea! How can I help?”

I’m glad you asked!

Well, ok, you didn’t, but that’s never stopped me from shooting off my mouth before, now, has it?

Here it is:

The Top Ten Items to Donate to Mission of Hope or YOUR Local Mission

10. Toiletries

Those hotel-sized shampoos, conditioners, and soaps are great. Also needed: toothpaste, toothbrushes, razors, shaving cream, deodorant, feminine hygiene items, wash cloths, and towels.

9. Cleaning supplies

You would not even believe how much glass cleaner, dishwashing detergent, toilet bowl cleaner, and anti-bacterial soap we go through. We give out cleaning supplies for needy people and also cleaning kits specially put together for flood victims.

8. Used jeans, t-shirts, and sweatshirts

Many transient men pick up odd jobs in the building trades and need decent attire for the job site.

7. NEW underwear and socks

Um, yeah, how would you like to wear somebody else’s underwear and socks? I thought so.

6. Outdoor wear

There is a huge need for heavy winter coats, gloves, and mittens. Also sorely needed are work gloves that can be worn by men on a construction job site.

5. Bedding

I don’t know about your local mission, but we have tons of people requesting mattress pads, sheets, blankets, pillow cases and pillows. We also give out heavy blankets to homeless who, for whatever reason, don’t/won’t go to shelters and instead they sleep under a bridge or in a parking garage.

4. Used appliances and furniture

Call your Mission and tell them what you have, and they will find a very needy and very appreciative individual who considers it a direct answer to prayer. To you, it’s a five year old stove; to them, it’s a gift from God.

3. Food

Items with a long shelf life are always appreciated. Think canned, jarred, frozen… it helps the staff put odd items together to make a meal, like the spaghetti noodles they got in today and the sauce they got a case of a couple weeks ago. Also, if it’s going to be given away in the food pantry, it’s easier to store and distribute. Single serving portions are simpler to give out, like a box of lunchbox sized bags of chips rather than a big family size bag of Doritos. Yeah, sure, the big bag is the better buy per ounce, but then somebody has to put them in little snack size zippy bags which is very time-consuming.

2. Miscellaneous– Call and ask!

Each Mission is going to be a little different in their needs. For instance, our Mission concentrates on providing men’s clothes, not women’s. If women’s clothes are donated, of course we do not throw them away; they are re-donated somewhere else such as the domestic violence shelter. We appreciate any donations at all, but we are extra thankful for items fulfilling our area of need. Hear me now and believe me later, word gets around on the street as to where to go to get what you need.

Just another example: our Mission serves a noon meal Tuesday through Friday, and we are always in need of a large volume of one food item (rather than a box of cans of all different kinds of food) so we can serve the same lunch to all the people who show up for lunch. If we get in a bunch of hams, a few boxes of velveeta, and several bags of potatoes, WAHLAH it’s time for Ham & Scalloped Potatoes for 140 people. And (bonus plan baby!) it’s a huge load off the mind of whoever has the task of trying to figure out what they’re going to serve a whole bunch of people the next day.

1. Perhaps most important– YOUR TIME

Somebody has to do it, it might as well be you! Somebody has to sort the donated items and put them away, make the sandwiches and serve them, sweep and vacuum, wash the dishes, clean out the refrigerator and shelves… there is literally NO END to the work that needs to be done. Your mission is probably short-staffed due to a tight budget existing only on donations. Volunteers are NECESSARY to stay open.

YOU can make a difference. Yes, YOU! And you won’t believe how great it feels.

Tom was on the news yesterday… he’s at about the -:54 mark.

That last statement at the end? 21 people turned away in one day? That’s my shelter.

And then as Nanner so kindly called to let me know, I was in the paper today… kinda sorta…

We’ll try not to let it get to our big fat heads.

Ahhh, so what can I tell you? Besides the fact that I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth???

I’ve been here and there on Facebook and Twitter, keeping up with y’all on my reader, and of course, working lots.

This job… wow. Mah Writing Mojo is in the corner, gagged, and rocking in the fetal position. This job is like, blog fodder heaven, but it’s like you found out you won the state lottery except they tell you later that they’re paying you in bananas. It’s really such a cryin’ shame that I have some sort of ethics that prevent me from tellin’ tales about some of the crazy shit that goes down here. It sucks, I tell ya. Schizophrenics off their meds, drunks, police, crack addicts, anger management issues, psychiatric wings, meltdowns… never a dull moment around here. But I love it. I love this work, and I love the people I’m serving. The only part that is really difficult is when I get off Monday at 7am and be back at 5pm. I should only have to do that for a couple more weeks while I’m covering some 2nd shifts. 

I’m still working on finding some kind of balance to work and home and play. It just seems like I get off work and I’m so damned exhausted, and it takes me so long to recover, then before I know it, it’s time to get right back there again. Mt. Laundry is untouched, and mocks me mercilessly.

I’m still waiting for the powers that be to get me into the U of I hospital to have the audiology department take a look at me. I’m still almost completely deaf in the left ear and have no idea why. I have quite a bit of pain almost every day now. The left hearing aid is basically useless because it isn’t strong enough to help any more. It’s hard sometimes to keep positive when I just want to stomp and yell “IT’S NOT FAIR! IT WASN’T SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN THIS QUICKLY!” but, hey, what’re ya gonna do, right?

I’ve managed to get out and take quite a few pictures lately, but haven’t had the time to to upload and share them with you. I’ll try to do it a bit at a time so I don’t do my impression of a kid showing off for company. I’m going to try to get back on Wordless Wednesday and Weekly Winners soon.

I bought a showcase spot on Etsy for tomorrow… I put a couple more listings up. Go on over there and get a username and heart me!

Oh, after years of being as regular as a Timex, I’m a couple weeks late. So I’m either pre-menopausal or pregnant, neither of which are particularly palatable choices. Now that I’ve said something, it’ll come tomorrow, and I can quit obsessing about it.

Rip it, roll it, and punch it, dude. Peace.

1. I haven’t been actually blogging GiST posts as much as I want to. Life happens. But let me just give you one observation that I’ve made. I’ve noticed that every day I look for Grace in Small Things. The motivation started just because I wanted something interesting in my GiST lists instead of same ol’ same ol’ stuff. But then I noticed that I am actively looking for small blessings as I go through my day. Life gets better when you’re cruising through and seeking for something to be grateful.
2. This new job. It’s lots of hours and it’s overnights– boo. But I can get my online stuff done– answering email, dropping Entrecards, writing posts, reading blogs and commenting, while it’s quiet here and I don’t feel guilty about it like I did when I was doing it at home. YAY! Also, as corny as it sounds, it’s more than just a job. I feel like I’m making a difference in someone’s life at the time they need it most.
3. I got my first check from the shelter and I feel useful again.
4. After a couple days of fitful, restless daytime sleep, Hunky got me a sleep mask. What an amazing difference it makes! Last week after I came through 8 straight overnights, most of them 12 hour shifts, I exhausted myself enough to hibernate. I slept for 12 hours straight! When I woke up, I felt like what I imagine a mama bear coming out of a cave for the first time in the spring would feel like.
5. My iPhone died, Hunky took it to the at&t store, and it was the last day we would have been able to trade it in for a new one on the spot. If we had come in the next day, we would have had to mess with sending it back to Apple and Apple sending us a new one, leaving me without a phone for a few days. YAY!

1. I’m up for Blogtation of the Year Award! I didn’t even realize mine was a Blogtation of the Month! Well, you better go vote… or at least go over there and just read the quotes, because of course they’re all excellent. I’m going to vote for Jenny, because I did actually LMAO when I read that quote in the original post.  P.S. If you vote for me, all of your wildest dreams will come true.*
2. Showering with a friend.
3. Gettin’ PAID for something that’s fun to do.
4. Kind compliments. I just realized that was dumb. Kind compliments as opposed to the mean compliments?!
5. Another Etsy sale!

Wage a Battle Against Embitterment With Schmutzie’s 365 Days of Grace in Small Things

*That was a Napoleon Dynamite reference just then.