10 more lunches in Waco

Who ever would have thought that High School students would be willing to get up early on their Saturday morning to serve some people in need in our area.

After talking about this 10 lunches idea, we offered an opportunity for some Baylor students as well as some High Schoolers from the area, to give back.  We met at the K-Life Club Building, rallied the troops, and got started.  The girls that came made muffins and banana nut bread and through Meals on Wheels visited the homes of some elderly adults. The guys started making sandwiches, each person had a part in the prep and we hit the road looking for someone who might need a lunch.

It's amazing how something so simple could be so powerful.  A small, plain brown bag lunch...a few muffins and a smile...the students involved got to see first-hand how easy is to serve someone else.  It doesn't take thousands of dollars, it just takes a heart that is willing.  And perhaps the highlight for me was watching our High Schoolers catch on to the idea of giving back, of doing something to make this world better.

If nothing else, I hope all of us can catch on to the idea of finding new, creative, fun, easy ways to serve. Let us know if you do something in your area or if you've got an idea...we want to share your story.

Thanks.

Mark Your Calendars

A number of people have expressed interest in making another group outing to help feed and clothe the needy in our community.  As result of this response, I'm in the process of planning a second outing, this one for March 21.  If you're in Kansas City and want to be a part of it, just check back here on the blog for more information or email me at 10lunches@gmail.com.  If you're not in Kansas City, we'd love for you to visit and be a part of what is happening here.  Or, you could get out on March 21 and do something in the community in which you live.  We would love to tell your story here on the blog.

That brings me to another point - we would love to tell your story!  If you're doing something in your community to serve others, we want to celebrate that.  Send me your story and we'll post it here on the blog.  Even if it's not your story but a friend's story, let's celebrate that too.  10 Lunches isn't so much about crafting "official" 10 Lunches outings, it's about encouraging others to act and celebrating those actions when they take place.  

I'd love to hear from you.

- Joel

Success

Love Day 09 turned out to be an enjoyable, successful event.  Close to 40 people showed up to pass out lunches in some needy areas in our community.  Some headed under bridges.  Others to bus stops and back alleys.  Still others posted up near soup kitchens and homeless shelters.  At day's end, we were able to pass out 150-200 lunches to people in need around the community.  Some folks even made it into the paper!  (Though that certainly was not our intention nor our motivation).  

You can read the article here - http://www.kansascity.com/115/story/1035243.html

Thanks to everyone who was able to be a part of the day.  Stay tuned for more 10 Lunches events.  It's exciting to see that what began as 1 person and 10 lunches has grown to 40 people and more than 150 lunches.  It won't always be passing out lunches.  I can't wait to see what's next.

- Joel

Love Day 09

So it's happening. Love Day '09. The inaugural edition. Here are the details:

When? 10:30am to 1:00pm on Valentine's Day

Where? Meet at The Scout Monument in Penn Valley Park; we will spread out through the community after we rally there

What? We will be passing out sack lunches to members of the community as an act of love on a day that is kind of dedicated to love.

What to Bring? Sack lunches to pass out - there is no minimum or maximum number of lunches to bring, just bring what you can.

What About Lunch For Myself? For those who are interested, we will meet for lunch around 1:15pm at Waldo Pizza (75th and Wornall)

This event is the product of a warm response to this article that ran in the Kansas City Star at the beginning of January- http://www.kansascity.com/105/story/966086.html - people said they'd be interested in doing the same thing. So that's what we're doing, passing out lunches around the community. Why not dedicate an hour and half of your Valentine's Day to serving other people? Bring your friends. Everyone is invited. We'll go out in groups to different parts of the downtown community.

If you have questions, don't hesitate to contact me (joelrthomason@gmail.com). If you don't live in Kansas City, do something similar in your city! Spread the love.

- Joel