By Amanda Frederick
Late in 2005, on a very cold December 1st, Mini-School students set out to earn volunteer hours for their 10th grade health class. Accompanied by Matt Mosuman, six students (Renee Aymar, Ryan S., Meghan H., Joe DiMiguel, Amanda Frederick, and Monica Sheats.) went to St, Matthews’s church in Minneapolis to volunteer for five hours.
We started out with wrapping spoons and forks into napkins, then into preparing the water, coffee, milk. Most of the adults in charge made and passed out the food. When people started to come, they would come and sit down and wait for the adults to say the food was ready to eat. All ages from babies, to the elders, had spaghetti, bananas, bread sticks, and a cookie.
For some of us, this was our first time serving, but the other half of us, this was our 2nd time being down there. Most of the families or individuals there couldn’t afford a good meal, or they needed a place to eat because they didn’t have a home to go to. This, for some of us, was an emotional ride. Renee Aymar was the one person to cry two times in a row. “It’s just so sad to see a little two-year-old girl come in with her mom, who looks like she’s only 19,” Renee said.
But there were some pretty funny parts as well as sad. We met a young boy and girl there, whose mom was in charge of Loaves and Fishes, who seemed to enjoy Matt. So much, in fact, that the young girl drew a picture of Matt then said, “You have a mustache, just like mommy!”
After the night ended, we went back to Minnetonka High School, left for home satisfied, with five more volunteer hours. This was just one of the options for SLP (Service Learning Project); there was also Timber Bay, the walk-a-thon, and painting the Mini-School rooms.