Passover Food Distribution Event - Call for Volunteers

The Family Violence Department is conducting their annual Food Distribution Event on April 1st at Masbia. This nutrition program helps feed families who have experienced violence in their homes while preserving their dignity. Families can shop for Kosher for Passover food in a grocery store like setting where they can choose from fresh produce, chicken, matzo, grape juice and other Kosher for Passover food items.

Each year more and more families benefit from this program. And this year you can help!

Every year, Met Council distributes special Passover packages to 55,000 households. Once again, we need help from our wonderful volunteers to coordinate and distribute these food packages to families in need from our Family Violence Department. Please let us know if you are interested in the Passover volunteer opportunity below.

Passover Food Distribution Volunteers

(Food Distribution to Clients)
Sunday, April 1, 10am-3:30pm
Flatbush, Brooklyn

One-time commitment

Volunteers are needed to participate in Met Council’s annual Passover Food Distribution for families affected by domestic violence. Duties will include registering clients, monitoring the food, handing out the packages, and helping clients carry the items. It’s a great way to help a family have enough food for Passover!

If you are interested in more information, please contact Irijah Stennett at 212-453-9526 or istennett@metcouncil.org.

The Kindness of Strangers

If you work with volunteers, random acts of kindness are an everyday occurrence. A large part of my job is spent communicating with people interested in giving their time freely to help fight poverty. But that doesn't mean it is no longer special when someone goes out of their way to lend a helping hand. And that is exactly what happened to me and Stefanie (your very own volunteer department) when we were stranded in Jamaica, Queens with our car's license plate hanging by a screw.

Stefanie and I were dropping of craft supplies for the Youth Enrichment Program - the weekend mentoring program we hold for homeless children every Sunday in Queens. When we parked to unload the trunk, I noticed a group of women pointing and laughing at our car. It didn't take long to discover what the joke was: our front plate was nearly coming off, held together by one loose screw. It looked like it could fall off at anytime, so we decided it would be best to get it repaired right away.

We were lucky to find an auto body shop after ten minutes of aimless driving. I pointed out the loose plates to the owner of the garage and asked him how much it would cost to repair (we, being from a social service agency, had a limited budget). He looked at me and, while smiling, called for his assistant to get a wrench. He then told us it was on-the-house.

So here we were, two volunteer coordinators in need of some assistance, and we were lucky enough to find yet another wonderful volunteer wiling to do the work pro-bono. It made both of our days! Which goes to show how people are volunteering their time and talents all the time to help out those in need.

So if you find yourself in Jamaica, Queens in need of auto repairs, I recommend you check out Lucky Auto Body on Liberty Avenue for friendly service!

Run for Masbia!

In response to the growing population of Jewish poor in Brooklyn and Queens, several years ago, Met Councilpartnered with Masbia's founders to establish 4 "free" Kosher restaurants. These community kitchens function just like a restaurant but there are no cash registers and all clients are served with dignity and respect.

Masbia achieves it mission with the help of thousands of volunteers and generous donors each year. Do you feel passionate about fighting hunger and poverty in NYC? Take part by joining Masbia's team for JRunner's 5k Run for a Cause! Get in shape, meet new friends, AND fight against hunger! What better way to spend your Sunday?

This brings new meaning to the phrase: Run to do a mitzvah. Sign up for our team and join us on a beautiful 5K course through scenic Prospect Park in Brooklyn on Sunday, April 1st. It doesn't matter what physical shape you are in-- finish the 5K course at your own pace, whether that's a leisurely stroll or a challenging run. All ages, sizes and shapes are welcome!

There will be separate races for men and women, and every participant is free to complete the 5K course at whatever pace and speed is right for them. It’s going to be a fun-packed day with free event T-shirts, chip timing, professional race photography, and live music! There also will be grand trophies given to the top three runners of the race, awards for the top three finishers of each age group, and finisher medals for everyone that completes the course.

To register with JRunners for Masbia’s team, you must commit to raise a minimum of $200. If for any reason a runner does not meet the minimum, they will be responsible for the difference. There is also a $20 registration fee. JRunners is the premier organization for running and health in the Jewish community and they offer free coaching on running the race as well as expert advice on how to use their fundraising web tools.

Register now to run or walk for Masbia by clicking here, and help us raise money to feed the hungry in New York everyday!

Internships: Give and Get

The summer internship season is approaching fast. Internships at Met Council are a great example of giving back while getting something in return. By interning here, you are helping Met Council run smoothly and continue to provide services to clients. In return, you are getting experience from a large multi-service agency, participating in exciting projects. At the end of your internship here, you will have solid accomplishments and hands-on experience under your belt.

Tips on applying

Met Council internships are highly competitive because of the experience we offer and we receive an overwhelming amount of applications each season. Here are some tips on how to stand out:

1. Spel corectlee, pleez. There is nothing more annoying than receiving an application with spelling errors in it. It shows us how little you care about the position if you couldn’t even take the time to read it over.
2. Do your homework. We love to see applicants who go above and beyond in showing how excited they are about the internship. Applicants who show they know about our organization, including personal names of the potential supervisors in their letter (rather than just “Dear Hiring Manager”).
3. Résumés aren’t everything. In addition to résumés, cover letters and writing samples are a unique way to show your skill.

Current Available Opportunities

Met Council is a large multi-service and multi-department agency; there is a wide variety of internships available because of this. Internship opportunities will be updated throughout this month. Click here for a list of all positions. Contact volunteer@metcouncil.org for more information.

Volunteering During Winter Break: Mimoza Januzi, Volunteer of the Month

When school was out for winter break, Mimoza did not relax at home like most of her peers. Instead she volunteered her time at Met Council, assisting low income seniors to get housing. Not many high school students exhibit the type of dedication and maturity that Mimoza Januzi has shown as a volunteer at Met Council. And for this reason we have named her Volunteer of the Month for March 2012!

Mimoza discovered Met Council as she was searching online for volunteer opportunities in geriatrics, a field that interests her as a future career. “I did many online searches and Met Council's mission caught my eye,” explains Mimoza. “I admire the organization for aiding many seniors who have limited resources.”

As a volunteer, Mimoza has served hot meals to seniors at our Senior Lunch Program and has spent over 150 hours working with our Housing Department providing administrative support to ensure that eligible seniors have a chance at receiving low income housing.

“You can always count on Mimosa to go the extra mile.” Temima Dublin, Director of Leasing, said. “We could not have accomplished all this without her help and are so grateful that she chose to volunteer at Met Council.”

Thanks to Mimoza’s hard work and compassion, hundreds of seniors have been aided in finding affordable housing and ensuring that they receive the community programming they need. We are so grateful for her time and work. Congratulations to Mimoza for being Volunteer of the Month!

Points of Light: National Volunteer Week 2012 Contest!

For more than two decades, Points of Light has equipped nonprofit organizations to celebrate National Volunteer Week, providing visibility, thematic focus, and resources to enable them to commemorate this signature week of volunteer recognition.

This year, National Volunteer Week is April 15 - 21, 2012. Points of Light Institute and Cabot are celebrating volunteers who make a difference in their communities with a cruise to Alaska! The prize package includes a trip for two (2) people on an 8 day, 7 night cruise to Alaska on Celebrity Cruises, flights from the winner’s local airport to the Port of Departure, flights from the Port of Arrival to the winner’s local airport, and a hotel room for the evening prior to departure in the city of departure.

Do you have an outstanding story or experience from volunteering? Enter on their facebook page by completing a simple form and tell your story for a chance at the prize! Best of luck!

Making New Friends While Volunteering by Guest Blogger Alana Tendler

When I walked into Met Council's Senior Lunch Program and saw a fellow volunteer who looked about my age I was very excited! Although NYC is filled with so many people, it is not easy to find friends with similar interests. Once Emily and I started sharing our backgrounds, we realized we had way more in common than either of us ever expected. Both of us are Jewish girls from New Jersey who have twin siblings. As if that wasn't enough, we both graduated from Syracuse University in 2009! Being active in our sororities and Hillel was something we were both committed to. Considering how many interests and shared experiences there are between Emily and I, it was so surprising that we had never met before!

These commonalities were interesting but not as exciting as the other aspects of life that Emily and I share. In New York City we both volunteer through Met Council and are members of the same women's group run by Gabrielle Bernstein. Emily works for Jewish Education Project – I observe a The Jewish People-hood Task Force at UJA. It still seems crazy that we had never met before participating in the Met Council Senior Lunch Program! One reason I love being part of different volunteer programs and nonprofit organizations is because I have the opportunity to meet people who I feel a connection with.

Since the Sunday morning introduction at Met Council's Senior Lunch Program, Emily and I have become great friends. She was a huge help collecting donations for an Items Drive I organized and executed for Met Council's Crisis Intervention and Family Violence program. Taking on the responsibility of being co-Volunteer Leaders at the Senior Lunch Program is something we are both passionate about. Engaging in conversation with the seniors is really fun and definitely more effective when we work together. Above all, I am thrilled to have a new friend in this hectic city! Our friendship has grown from volunteering together to a broad spectrum of shared experiences. We have brought our different groups of friends together and enjoy exploring Manhattan as an extended group of like-minded women. Thank you, Met Council, for bringing us together!