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February 2013

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New Volunteer Round! 2013 Team Works Project 1

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Two or three times a year Austin and I volunteer through the Team Works program at Seattle Works. It’s a cool way to meet people (and why I signed up when I moved back in 2010); you may remember my attempts to get money from you all this December on their behalf. In Team Works, a group of around 15 people volunteer at different projects, one Saturday per month, for four months. We’re working for four hours at a clip, doing things like pulling blackberry bushes and laying mulch at King County Parks, recycling expired car seats, or painting a not-for-profit’s interior space. It can be a lot of fun, and is often a lot of hard work.

This round started off yesterday with a stint at Roots, an overnight shelter for young men and women (18-25). They provide nightly accommodations for up to 45 guests, including dinner and breakfast, as well as an opportunity to take a shower. Austin had actually volunteered there in the past. 

This was a project that didn’t require a lot of tough outdoor manual labor, which was pretty welcome on a chilly February day. We spent the day stuffing the quarterly newsletter with donation envelopes, sealing them up and labeling them for mailing. It took twelve of us a little over three hours to get through it all, but I can’t imagine how long it would have taken one or two volunteers.

Next month we’ll be at Marra Farm. Hopefully we’ll have some good weather and have fun getting our hands dirty.