—Margaret Mead
The last 11 weeks have proven to be anything but a dull summer:
- congressional alterations, cuts, and changes to the entire structure of food assistance some 46 million people in our country depend upon,
- hosting and welcoming Washington Nationals players and even a 2010 Super Bowl champion to raise awareness of the Capital Area Food Bank’s role in the Washington metro area,
- plus, a move of the Capital Area Food Bank infrastructure and staff into a 123,000-square foot new food distribution center in late July.
My panoramic view of the summer leaves me with gratitude for having been accepted as an intern at the Capital Area Food Bank. In particular, the sense of community I’ve witnessed here reveals how and why the Capital Area Food Bank keeps true to its constituents and its mission:
From warehouse workers to Kids’ Cafe educators, from communications and development staff to volunteer coordinators, to Father Eugene Brake’s constant presence and throughout all departments at CAFB, a nourishing community is felt. As American anthropologist Margaret Mead might say about us, we have just that group of “thoughtful, committed citizens” to change our part of the world at least.
These are people who do not cease in diligence, but rather continue to build community wherever their offices take root and food needs remain. I’m just hoping that my time spent in communications and marketing here, of honing, reflecting on and delivering messages of food access and equity will be my first steps on a winding, yet meaningful path.
Sure, there have been moments of deadlines, of balancing internship life with ongoing graduate coursework, with transitioning into the hot, humid and hazy belt of weather that tightens over the Washington, DC area in the middle of summer. Even so, I still feel nothing but gratitude for my immersion here.
Thank you all at the Capital Area Food Bank for making this possible!