Vanguard – Hunting Park, Philadelphia

(9/11/2010: Day 1 of 365)

Upon first look at the vacant lot on 5th Street in the Hunting Park section of Philadelphia, one would have thought it an insurmountable challenge to clean and level the area. The brush was wildly over grown; there was trash and debris covering the ground and a huge Mulberry tree that had sprouted in the middle of the lot. The neighbors on the block called it "The Mulberry Trash Tree" because people would just dump trash all around the tree and no one ever picked it up. In addition to all of this waste, there were also tons of broken cinder blocks, glass and concrete flooring from the basement of what used to be a home scattered all over this lot.

The community organizers from One Hope Church, a block away, had been given a grant from the EPA to help transform this garbage jungle into a community garden for use by the neighbors and surrounding schools. The plans looked great on paper but would take a figurative army to achieve. That is where the Vanguard Volunteers, through the United Way Day's of Caring, stepped up to the challenge. The volunteers attacked the lot with determined strength and dedication to make this a better place for the 5th Street residents. 35 plus people began work on clearing the debris, loading the cinder blocks, cutting down the old tree and hauling out all the garbage into the city sanitation trucks. During the first hour they came across everything from what was left of a one time home - including the kitchen sink! And glass doors, and windows, and cabinets, and ladders, and lights all settled for years along piles of garbage and overgrown ivy and brush. Each clean sweep uncovered another layer that needed to be removed. With the help of the city sanitation workers the volunteers hauled over 2 tons of material onto the garbage trucks.

As the morning turned into lunch time and the volunteers stopped for a break the residents of 5th Street began to peek out of their windows to see the action and the progress. At first a couple of friendly neighbors came over to lend a hand to the volunteers. They picked up rakes and shovels and helped with clearing the lot. Crystal, the block captain, worked on her own little section of the lot totally clearing it of trash, using her own trashcan to boot. Joe and his daughter, Brenda, both members of the One Hope Church, took down an old chain link fence so that trucks could drive onto the lot to help with planting the garden. Carmelina, a long time resident of 5th street worked along side of Matt, the church's pastor, on guiding the volunteers on where to create the ramps for the trucks and painting the wall - she even picked out the bright green color for happiness. Andy, the volunteer organizer from the community pointed out that there were 3 young men that he had been trying to reach for over a year through community outreach programs that now held shovels and trash bags in a real effort to clean up their neighborhood. With tears in his eyes, Andy thanked the volunteers for doing so much more than hauling garbage for his community.

The impact that the volunteers made on the lot was most likely rivaled the impact that they made on the lives of these people. The outpouring of gratitude from the neighbors as they jumped in to help was proof enough that a little bit of hard work and inspiration can move mountains…or in this case Mulberry Trash trees. The most amazing moment of the day happened just as the volunteers were packing it in and having a last look at the progress they had made. From just over the horizon of the now cleared lot came a parade of neighborhood women, lead by Carmelina, carrying pans of barbecue chicken, empanadas, sodas, waters, napkins and plenty of love. These women transformed their sidewalks into a buffet of thanks for the Vanguard Volunteers. They served the volunteers like they were family, encouraging them to, "eat more," as they left. After all the volunteers left, a couple of them came back to the lot to find those three young men who were considered lost and tossed them out a t-shirt touting "Live United." The same tag line worn by all the volunteers....all day long. This display of a community coming together clearly gives the neighborhood hope for a brighter and cleaner future.

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Brown Brothers Harriman – Snack Pack Drive

(10/16/2009: Day 30 of 365)

Brown Brothers Harriman elected to conduct a snack pack food drive out of their Philadelphia office for their United Way Kickoff. Employees at Brown Brothers Harriman purchased a variety of snack foods such as potato chips, pretzels, and candy. While spending the afternoon together, the employees made snack packs with the assorted food items. In just one afternoon, they were able to assemble 355 snack packs. The United Way, via the Gifts in Kind Program, distributed the snacks to Project Home, Grand as Parents, Christ Lutheran Community Development, and Programs Employing People.

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Managers Investment Group – Red Cross Fire Awareness

(10/27/2009: Day 41 of 365)

Managers Investment Group, a new United Way participant in 2009, recently conducted a drive with the Red Cross. Nearly every employee at Managers Investment worked to assemble 2,000 Fire Safety Kits at their offices in Conshohocken, PA. The Fire Safety Kits contain literature to educate people on how to stay fire safe in their homes, as well as batteries for smoke alarms. A smaller group of employees spent the next morning walking around Conshohocken to distribute 500 of the kits to local residents.

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YellowBook – Cubicle Gifts-in-Kind

(11/6/2009: Day 51 of 365)

YellowBook recently allowed many of their employees to start telecommuting. Removing cubicles from where these employees used to sit was going to cost YellowBook thousands of dollars in removal and storage fees. YellowBook chose to donate these cubicles to the United Way Gift-in-Kind program. This allowed a local non-profit to take advantage of this furniture. Center in the Park, a community center that promotes positive aging and fosters community connections for older adults in Northwest Philadelphia, was able to take and use $10,000 worth of cubicles in their office.

Learn more about the impact YellowBook made at Center in the Park

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EDSI Day of Caring at Build a Bridge

(11/16/2009: Day 61 of 365)

Build a Bridge is an organization that works to heal via the power of art. They work in communities that are in tough and challenging neighborhoods around the world. Recently employees of EDSI spent the day creating an art studio with Build a Bridge for youth that live in some of the challenging urban Philadelphia neighborhoods. The EDSI employees, cleaned out an old storage room, assembled tables and chairs, and set up art supplies. The room is expected to be a very popular destination for neighborhood youth.

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UWSEPA Loaned Executive Day of Caring
at Cradles to Crayons

(11/17/2009: Day 62 of 365)

The 2009 Loaned Executives from the United Way spent the day at Cradles to Crayons in Horsham, PA. 18 volunteers arrived ready to sort, clean, test, and move donated items for local children in need. Some volunteers sorted and packed children’s clothes, others tested strollers and car seats, while some unpacked 4 U-haul trucks of donations. The year end holiday season is the busiest time for Cradles to Crayons, which served over 48,000 children last year alone.

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