Last week on Monday (1/16/12), Americans across the country
observed Martin Luther King Jr. Day. While some spent the day off from work and
classes relaxing, others spent the day giving back to the community. Lauren
Yaffe falls into the latter group. After hearing about Will Work for Food from
her cousin, co-founder Steve Weinberg, Lauren has spent the last four Martin
Luther King Jr. Days at the Chicago Cares MLK Jr. Day of Service event. We
caught up with Lauren to talk about how she spent her MLK Jr. Day, how she has
maintained sponsorship for three years (a difficult feat!), and her advice for
those who are interested in Will Work for Food.
Lauren (wearing the Michigan sweatshirt) with fellow
volunteers.
What activities did you do for MLK Day this year?
I annually attend the Chicago Cares MLK Jr. Day of Service
volunteering event. I have attended the event the last four years and it's a
well organized event with lots of volunteers from all over Chicago.Chicago
Cares assigns each volunteer to a project each year so you never know what
you'll do until the day of the event! This year, I volunteered at an elementary
school on the south side of Chicago. The event was open to children and
teenagers to participate in activities at the school for most of the day on
Saturday Jan 14th. I volunteered with older kids ages 8-14 doing interactive
activities throughout the day. We did a "love your neighbor" activity
allowing the kids to interact with their peers as well as learn that we are all
similar in many ways. We then did a game called the Bully Machine in which we
taught kids about bullying and how to respond when they get bullied or if they
see a friend or fellow student getting bullied. Cyberbullying is a major issue
in schools right now due to Facebook, Twitter and even texting, so it is
important to teach kids tolerance and acceptance as well as how to respond if
they are being bullied. The last activity allowed the kids to paint their ideas
of what symbols of peace look like throughout the world. We glued all the
paintings together into a mural that was hung in the school foyer for all the
kids to see.
Describe how you have continued your relationship with your
sponsors over the years.
I only choose one volunteer event each year to get WWFF
sponsorship for. I have decided that a large annual full day volunteer project
seems worthy of asking for sponsorship from my friends and family. Plus, it is
an annual commitment that I have made to Chicago Cares and WWFF that most of my
friends and family recognize. I also make it known that any form of financial
support is appreciated and can make an impact on child malnutrition. I also
encourage my friends to volunteer with me each year! Each year, I've had 1-2
friends to volunteer with me (usually U of M grads!). When asking for
sponsorship/donations, I usually only reach out to friends that I have a strong
relationship with. I also like to ask co-workers that I'm close with if I think
that they would be passionate about the WWFF cause. Lastly, after the volunteer
activity, I write all the sponsors a follow up email sharing with them what
volunteer activity I did for the day (with pictures attached) as well as how
much they helped to raise in total. I think this email allows the sponsors to
feel included in the work effort rather than feel just like a person who
donated.
Do you have any advice for those who are interested in Will
Work for Food but need ideas or inspiration going forward?
I think that people should volunteer for a cause that they
are passionate about. I am passionate about fighting child malnutrition in
Africa (I've traveled to Kenya, Morocco, South Africa and Zambia and have seen
the living conditions, poverty and lack of clean water) and think the cause is
worthy of our support. Also, I enjoy giving back to my community while also
making friends. Thus, I often try to volunteer with Chicago Cares activities
which has many young professionals. I also enjoy volunteering with University
of Michigan alumni to stay connected to my college roots. It's important to be
selective in asking for sponsors. If someone chooses to tutor children every
other week at a local elementary school, that person could ask for sponsorship
for the entire year based on their bi-weekly commitment to serve in the
community. I have chosen to partner with WWFF for my annual Chicago Cares MLK
Jr. Day of Service.
Lauren, thank you so much for your continued support for
Will Work for Food and your philanthropic spirit. We look forward to hearing
about your future accomplishments!
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