At 6 a.m., all 21 Ozanam students hauled themselves into two vans half-awake for their first volunteer experience. The ride to Germantown, PA consisted of snores, reading, and listening to music-- no one traveled eager to serve at an organization almost two and a half hours away; however, that attitude transformed as we spent thought-provoking moments serving and reflecting on our service. Ozanam split into three groups going to three different organizations. I followed one group which took a 30-minute drive to a community center where we prepared and packed sandwiches for the homeless. Entering the room, I stared in amazement at the plentiful number of families and students bustling together as they packed sandwiches. We put on a scratchy hair nets and too-small synthetic gloves, jumping right into the crowd of volunteers and unsure what to do as every station was filled. Our site coordinator exclaimed that the turn-out was beyond expected and the work-pace was faster than she had ever seen. Some of us put together ham, turkey, or cheese sandwiches while others worked in an assembly line to pack. A sandwich and an apple in every bag. As I packed, I wondered, is this all we can give? One sandwich with one piece of meat or cheese in between and an apple? Why do we not give more? I pondered these questions as I packed, questioning whether it was because we do not see the homeless as deserving much. By only giving them so little seemed parallel to saying "you are only worth this thin sandwich and an apple." Perhaps, it is because the center did not have enough to give, but that small meal may still leave that impression printed on the homeless person who receives it.  

     As we delivered the 1500 bags from the community center to various shelters serving women, youth, and the rest of the homeless population, we encountered an odd but insightful experience. While dragging boxes of food to one shelter, a man in dragged and ragged clothes approached us asking for a bag of food. Neither I nor my friends knew how to deal with this encounter and became uncomfortable and unsure. It was only after our advisor gave us an ok that we gave him a bag of food. That experience wrote the awkwardness people have when working with the marginalized; a kind of uneasiness one should not feel when working with those in need of social justice but cannot help it.  

     Carrying the last heavy load from the van, we traveled back to our meeting place for reflection. We have begun to ask ourselves why we serve others, and the significance one act of volunteer work can make an impact in an unknown person's day or life. This experience, one of many to come, brought a lot of insight with it. We had packed over 1,500 bags for various shelters, and this was just for the homeless population in one small town. NYC homelessness could not be anywhere near the population of homeless in this city, and that was a scary thought. Moreover, many homeless people may not get help from shelters.  

     Homelessness is a vast issue rooted deep into history. To solve something that presidents and policy makers have not been able to conquer in decades may not be solved by college students, but we can minimize the issue. First, we must stop the stigmatization of the homeless as this leads the homeless to remain hopeless. If we treat the homeless with the same uncomfortable look and feel as my volunteer friends and I did today, we risk discouraging the homeless out of their current state. Rather, we are shunning them back to their low-status and we cannot approach the issues which arise from homelessness. The second difference I would attempt to make is advancing the kind of volunteer work I completed in Germantown. When packing for the homeless, one should not only think of food to give, but other necessary products as well. Homeless shelters should attempt to offer more food and provide other needs such as menstrual products for women, razors, soap, and other essential products. By giving more, we are treating them with the respect and dignity they deserve and need in order to push themselves out of homelessness.