Volunteer week - MEND

For my volunteer assignment I voulenteerd at MEND in the San Fernando Valley. I brought clothes from my closet that I did not wear anymore and that didn't fit me, some shoes, jackets, and a umbrella. I took my box of donations down and volunteered sorting clothes and electronics for most of my afternoon. MEND has impacted so many families in such a posititve way it even blessed my own grandparents.

My families history with MEND dates back to the Sylmar Earthquake back in 1971. My mother and my grandmother were making food early in the morning for their family. Being in the kitchen when the Earthquake hit they were exposed to the shattering of all their plates and glasses. My grandparents were poor imigrants who came from Mexico for better opporunity in America raising 5 children and sacrificed to send them to private catholic schools for a better education. Ultimately they could not afford to replace all their damaged plates due to their financial inability. 

My mother and her siblings ate off of paper plates and paper cups for a few months in the aftermath of the earthquake until MEND donated boxes full of mismatched plates and glass cups.