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Day 75 – Phillip B.

Posted in Food & Beverage, tagged , , , , , , , , , , on February 28, 2010| 3 Comments »

Terrible news from Chile…another devastating earthquake shocks us this year.  Luckily the epicenter was not in as densely of a populated area like it was in Haiti.  Nonetheless, I have made myself available to travel to Chile if there is a relief organization that can use my services.  I speak Spanish and have been to Chile and would welcome the opportunity to help those in need.

Phillip sells a paper to a passerby (Photo: Reed S.)

On Day 75 I met Phillip, a colorful salesman for Street Sense.  I was driving north on Wisconsin Ave. in the Tenleytown neighborhood on my way to my father’s place in Pennsylvania when I saw a man on the right side of the road with a “Cat in the Hat” type hat.  Well, I had to pull over and meet this guy.

As it turns out Phillip is a Street Sense vendor and the hat is part of his “marketing.”  He is vendor number 202 and has been selling the paper for 2.5 years.  He told me that summer is the best time of year for selling the paper when he can often sell over his average of 30-40 papers a day.

Phillip is homeless and on two waiting lists for subsidized housing.  “You would not believe how many people are one or two paychecks away from being homeless,” says the former plumber whose problems started when he was hospitalized with stomach ulcers and bleeding.  He spent 17 days in the hospital and when he came out he found himself losing his home and his marriage in peril.  He got better, but unfortunately was not able to reconcile his marriage.  Financially he was in freefall and ended up on the streets.

Go see Phillip if you are in DC.  He radiates love and kindness.  He can be found in front of the CVS near the intersection of Wisconsin Ave. and Brandywine St.  Look for the hat!  Phillip needs clothes: Shirts (XL), Pants (38×34), Shoes/Boots (11), Gloves (Med/Large). 

Here is a great video clip of Phillip explaining how he stays indoors during the bitter cold months.  

There is another great video of Phillip on Facebook.  Click here to see it.

Update July 7, 2010: Here is some video of Phillip receiving some of your donations!

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Day 31 – Gilles

Posted in Something for others, tagged , , , , , , , , on January 15, 2010| 3 Comments »

The end of my first month.  I have invested $310 to date in random acts of kindness.  It has been worth every penny!

Embassy of Haiti in Washington, DC

I decided to go to the Haitian Embassy to see if there was something I could do to help in the aftermath of the earthquake in Haiti.  I arrived at the embassy to see it blanketed in camera crews and news trucks.  There was a small candle memorial in front of the embassy as well.  Apart from the news personnel, I did not see many people outside.  I saw two gentlemen walking toward the embassy and I thought I would offer them my $10.

Gilles’ mind was clearly elsewhere and I sensed that he has suffered greatly from this earthquake.  Despite this, he kindly responded to me, “You can give me money, but any money you give me is going to go directly to the efforts to help those in Haiti.”  He invited me into the embassy and said he would be with me in a minute.  I figured he worked for the embassy at this point, but I later found out that he was from Philadelphia and worked for Church & Dwight, the company that makes Arm & Hammer and several other household and personal care products.  

I waited in the lobby of the embassy for Gilles for a few minutes.  There were about 20 in the lobby.  Some looked almost lifeless, paralyzed by the tragedy and loss of this week’s earthquake.  Others were bustling around trying to resolve a myriad of questions.

Gilles appeared and explained to me that he was born and raised in Port au Prince and had left his homeland five years ago to move to Philadelphia, PA.  He had driven down from the city of brotherly love to try to get his passport in order so that he could fly to Port au Prince to help in the relief efforts.  His plan was to get a satellite phone and then help the people of Haiti get in contact with their friends and families.  “Communication is limited there right now.” He paused and continued, “There are lots of deaths.” I asked him about his family and he said he was able to contact his family to find out if everyone was ok.  I heard a tremor in his voice and saw him holding back a tidal wave of emotion.  There was a split second where I had to decide whether I push on and ask about his family or avoid the potentially painful subject.  I gathered the courage and tried to respectfully push further.

“I lost my mother,” he said.

Gilles didn’t cry, but the tears were flowing inside him.  I found it hard to swallow and really wanted to just give him a hug.  I understood that she died at home when their building collapsed.  He says the rest of his immediate family appears to be ok.

Where do I go from here?  There are so many things I want to ask him, but I also know

Earthquake devastation in Haiti

 that he has much more important things to be doing now.  I asked him how readers of my blog could help.  “They need food, water, and medicine,” he told me.  They really need on the ground volunteers he explains.  He says he will introduce me to someone from the Greater Washington Haiti Relief Committee who can give me more details on how you can help.    

But first he says, “Come with me and we are going to donate the $10 right now.”  We walk to a desk with a woman speaking on the phone.  When she hangs up, she explains that she can not accept cash.  Gilles holds the $10 out in front of him and says, “You keep it man.  Find another way to donate.” I encouraged him to hold on to the money and put it to good use while he was in Haiti.  He agreed.  I gave him a hug and said I was sorry about his mother and wished him good luck.  I wish I would have asked for his email address so that I could follow up with him later.  It was such an emotional moment that I simply forgot.  Maybe someone reading this blog can help me find him.  I did some searches but haven’t had any luck so far.

I later spoke to Fermin from the Greater Washington Haiti Relief Group.  He said the best place for information on how to help can be found at their Facebook page.  Type “Greater Washington Haiti Relief Committee” in the search field and it should come up.  There they give this information about donations:

Make checks payable to “GWHRC” and mail to:
Greater Washington Haitian Relief Committee
Embassy of Haiti
2311 Massachusetts Ave NW
Washington, DC 20007

Needless to say it was a very powerful scene to witness first hand. I gave my name and contact details to them and offered to help in any way possible.  I even offered to go to Haiti one month from now to help in reconstruction efforts.  Hopefully I can help in some way.

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Day 30 – Kenneth B.

Posted in Food & Beverage, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 14, 2010| 3 Comments »

Today was a busy day!

I had an informative meeting with a friend of a friend on how to effectively incorporate twitter into my Year of Giving.  Look for this being added to the site soon.  Then I had a meeting with World Neighbors, a very impressive international development organization whose focus is to eliminate hunger, poverty, and disease in the poorest, most isolated rural villages in the developing world.  I urge you to check out their website and support their fantastic work.  Then I met up with Jenny from Day 13 to follow up on her thoughts about being a recipient of the Year of Giving and

Jenny from Day 13 in front of Kramerbooks where I met her

how her job search is going.  As you might remember, several YoG blog readers commented on suggestions for her to find work in the international public health sector.  Thanks to all that helped!  I should have a short video posted on Facebook soon where Jenny talks about her reaction to the Year of Giving as well as her own altruistic pledge!

Finally I went to the Embassy of Haiti to volunteer my time and resources to any efforts that they may have.  As I approached the embassy I was greeted by news trucks and a small memorial of candles and paintings.  Inside the embassy there was a very uncomfortable vibe.  Somber yet frantic if you can imagine.   The hustle and bustle of people was occasionally broken up by tears and desperation.  While I was there, I gave away my $10 to Gilles, a Haitian-American who lost his mother in the earthquake.  It was a very moving experience.  I will give a full report on Gilles tomorrow. 

I have been so busy, that I have not updated the blog on yesterday’s recipient…so here goes.

On day 30 I found Kenneth selling Street Sense at the Dupont Circle Metro entrance.  I bought a paper for $1.00 from the 43-year-old and asked if I could talk to him about a project I was doing.  He agreed and grabbed his personal items and suggested we have a seat nearby on a bench.  Kenneth is cheerful and full of energy. 

Kenneth selling Street Sense at the Dupont Circle Metro entrance

Before I finish telling you about my gift to Kenneth, let me say a few more words about Street Sense.  Street Sense is a great paper produced twice a month that is mostly run and written by those who are homeless or below the poverty level in DC.  You might recall David from Day 5 who was also selling Street Sense.  I have seen the Street Sense sales people for years, but never bought the paper.  Since I bought my first copy from David, I have really become a fan.  The paper is short and can be read in one sitting.  The stories are great and really give you insight into the DC homeless and poverty issues.  Sixty-five cents goes to the vendor and thirty-five cents goes to the paper.  The next time you see a sales person, stop, say hello, and buy an issue.  It’s a dollar!  These people are making an honest buck and the paper is great.  Here’s a little bit of trivia too.  Check out their vendor ID number and you can tell how long they have been at Street Sense.  They go sequentially from when they started so you might meet someone who has been there since the early days back in 2003 when it was started if they have a number under 20 for example.

Back to Kenneth.  He shared with me that he suffered from various conditions (bipolar, schizoaffective, and post traumatic stress) and as a result was living in a community residence facility (CRF), which is like an assisted living situation.  Although he said he wished that he could live on his own, I sensed that he understood that living in the CRF would help him get the most out of life.  

He enjoys selling the paper.  On good days, he sells his 20 papers within 2-3 hours.  Occasionally he gets the opportunity to mentor young professionals who want to experience what it is like to work for a nonprofit organization – he says he really enjoys that. 

I am mindful that my time with Kenneth is keeping him from selling his papers and wrap up our conversation.  He says he will spend the money on food this week.  I asked him if I could take his picture and he smiled and happily said that was fine.  He quickly went back to work hawking the remaining papers.  I encourage everyone who uses the Dupont Circle Metro to keep and eye out for Kenneth.  He is usually at the corner of 20th and Q.  Say hello, get a paper, and tell him that I sent you!  If you don’t live in the DC area, check to see if your city has a newspaper dedicated to the poor and homeless, lots of urban areas have them!

One final note, I heard back from Zazzle.com about sponsoring business cards for the Year of Giving.  They were delighted to help and will be shipping me 500 cards shortly!  THANK YOU!!!  Check out there site.  They have an interesting business model and do all kinds of other personalized items (clothes, mugs, etc.).

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