“As you grow older, you will discover that you have two hands — one for helping yourself, the other for helping others.” Audrey Hepburn
Our Human Services Day got off to an amazing start with a full program day that can only do one thing and that is tug at your heartstrings. Even if you have lived in Pinellas County all your life, this day is always an emotional day and brings with it, the gift of realization of how truly blessed we are.
We began with the always-impactful RCS Food Bank and then the class enjoyed a fabulous buffet breakfast by one of our sponsors Pinellas Community Foundation. We left the food bank and headed over to The ARC Tampa Bay, where the experience was absolutely phenomenal. There we had several dynamic speakers, played the “Hunger 101” game, and witnessed the first-ever Special Olympics hosted at the ARC. That was a notable treat to be a part of it. The face of pride on each participant was priceless!
Next, we went to Homeless Empowerment Project (HEP), where we toured the campus and saw the tremendous influence HEP is having in the local community. We were treated to a yummy lunch sponsored by HEP as well.
Our next stop was at the Lighthouse of Pinellas, where we got a first-hand experience of what it feels like to be visually impaired and heard a success story coming out of this.
We visited Habitat for Humanity where the class toured a recently completed home and heard all about the process for homeownership and the successes in creating homeownership opportunities for low-income families. The day concluded at Clothes to Kids where the class witnessed a setting much like a boutique, which provides free clothing for school-age children in low-income families or in crisis.
At each of our stops, the speakers highlighted their leadership skills and discussed the need for community partnerships to provide better quality services. The class listened to leaders speak about how their organizations make a difference daily in the lives of many in our community.
Very special thanks to the Human Services Day committee Brian Siracusa ’14, Randy Nilsson ’14, Tamara Black ‘18, Leah Slavensky ’18, and Amanda Fisher ’07.
If you want to help plan a day for 2019 and still would like to be involved, you are very much wanted. So please reach out to me and we can absolutely use your skills and talent. My contact information is [email protected] or 813-957-8107.