BlackRock Volunteers with Met Council's Career Services

Seventeen enthusiastic volunteers from BlackRock came to volunteer with Met Council’s E.H.R (Electronic Health Records) students on a slushy Wednesday night to conduct a Mock Interview Workshop. In the workshop each volunteer administered interviews to two different students. This allowed the student to get feedback on their interviewing styles and resumes from two different interviewers. Each volunteer generously donated money to Met Council which provided dinner for the event.

A pleasant surprise came when BlackRock announced they would be giving a matching donation for all the money donated by their volunteers! Having the use of such skilled volunteers for Met Council’s job readiness programs is essential to the success of these programs. They are only as good as the volunteers staffing them. Students got constructive feedback, not just the usual positive encouragement. It was real world advice on very specific details of their interviewing skills and resume compilation.


Volunteer Feedback

“I think the workshop will be very valuable to the clients. I was able to provide the interviewees with a firsthand look into what it feels like to be auditioning for a job. They appreciated the honest feedback and constructive criticism on their resumes and interviewing skills. The clients comment that they typically have a hard time distinguishing themselves amongst other candidates, so I assisted with that.”

“I think the workshop was great as the participants seemed very excited about the opportunity. It’s no secret that the economy is in recovery and jobs can be scarce so this sort of program is much needed. I thought the individuals I interviewed conveyed a lot of enthusiasm and were fully committed to the program.”

Client Feedback

“I found the sessions very helpful. Pointers were given on how to improve my resume and several interviews tips. Both of my interviewers were very competent. Thanks very much for the opportunity.”

“Very informative; it was an excellent opportunity to explore my strengths and weaknesses. It was a positive experience. I am very happy that I had the opportunity to do this exercise. I went into the first interview feeling apprehensive. By the evaluation of the second interview I felt that I had reasonable interviewing skills. The staff [BlackRock volunteers] indicated points that I need to work on. Thank you.”

Purim at Masbia!

On Sunday, March 20th, one of our highly dedicated volunteer groups, Global-Potential, served food to low-income individuals and families at Masbia, Met Council's Kosher Community Kitchen. Global-Potential is a global leadership service program that works with inner-city youth from a variety of religious and ethnic backgrounds.

This was a particularly special day at the soup kitchen, as it was offering a festive celebration for the clients on the Jewish holiday of Purim, which some might call a "Jewish Halloween." In the spirit of Purim, the members of Global-Potential were dressed up in costume while serving the clients.

It was a bittersweet day at Masbia, as it was rewarding for the volunteers to help the individuals and families, but also painful to see so many hungry people.

Appointment Buddies Needed!

Appointment Buddies is a program that matches volunteers to our senior clients. Volunteers are expected to assist a senior client in traveling to and from various appointments. This program aims to offer assistance and support to our senior clients. By providing a volunteer to travel with our clients to their appointments, Met Council is assured that they are receiving the care that they need. It is often a challenge for seniors to travel to and from appointments, and they are often forced to rely on inconsistent services that may get them to their appointments hours before they begin. By participating in Appointment Buddies, the client will have a Met Council volunteer to travel with and get them to their appointment safely and at an appropriate time.

If you are interested, please contact Malwina Andruczyk at 212.453.9526 or mandru@metcouncil.org for more details.

First Senior Nutrition Workshop!

On Sunday, March 20th, our first Senior Nutrition Workshop took place at a senior residence in Brooklyn!

It was well attended, and led by a wonderful volunteer named Abigail.

With her help we learned a lot about how to read Nutrition Labels. We learned to question what we see on the front of a box of food, and what to look for on the nutrition label.

Workshops will be happening every month!

A Leader in Food Justice: Emily Silman, Volunteer of the Month

Nutrition and food justice have always been important issues to Emily Silman. So when she went to a food politics conference at Columbia University and saw Met Council’s kosher food network booth, she decided she wanted to get involved.

“It was the first time I’d heard of a Jewish-focused food charity in New York City,” Emily recalls, “and I loved hearing that they took care of hungry Jewish New Yorkers, especially those who keep kosher.”

Fitting with her interests, Emily earned her stripes as a volunteer by handing out fresh chickens for 6 hours during the Passover Food Distribution event for families who have been victims of domestic violence. The Volunteer Department was so impressed with her commitment (not just anyone would hand out chicken for 6 hours) that she was quickly invited to become a volunteer leader for the Senior Lunch Program.

Since that time, Emily has staffed groups of volunteers once a month to serve hot kosher meals to low income seniors at a Met Council housing site. As a volunteer leader, Emily’s responsibilities include supervising volunteers, teaching them about Met Council, as well as ensuring that the lunch program runs smoothly and effectively.

“It’s great to be able to introduce people to Met Council for the first time,” said Emily. “Most of the volunteers from the groups I work with are new to Met Council, but as soon as they hear what we do and volunteer with us for the first time they say “I want to come back!””

In addition to leading volunteers, Emily has also taken a leadership role as an active member of the MVP Planning Committee, which steers a group of dedicated and motivated young professional who are committed to Met Council’s mission of fighting poverty in New York City.

Thanks to her hard work and dedication, Emily has ensured that Met Council clients gain access to the services they need to fight poverty and hunger in New York City.

Sandwich Shoppe Event!

On Sunday, February 27th, the Young Professional Group (YPG) of Park Avenue Synagogue teamed up Met Council in holding a Sandwich Shoppe at our E 61st Street senior housing site. This was YPG's first volunteer project as a group and what a fabulous way to debut their philanthropic efforts!

At the program, the volunteers were assigned specific roles so that everything ran smoothly and all attendees were accounted for. One person greeted the residents as they walked in, while other volunteers were assigned the roles of wait staff, servers, and/or 'socializers.' The residents were greeted with a warm welcome by one of the volunteer's children, who gave residents a menu as they walked in. The wait staff then took their sandwich orders, which were then given to the servers to make the sandwiches.

Constant conversation took place between the volunteers and residents, as well as among the residents themselves. Not only were we providing a free meal for the residents, but this was a great way to foster a sense of community in our pursuit of strengthening the relationships among the residents.

Based on the feedback of the volunteers and residents, the event was a huge success!