On New Years this year I teamed up with Walker Avery, another Watkinson student, to help out at a local food pantry and meal providing service that provides free meals for people on New Year’s Day. It hurts me to know that people don’t have the money to afford food and so it was the least we could do to help out an already struggling community. Walker and I paired up as dishwashers, which didn’t really allow us to meet and talk with the customers but I did still have two very unique experiences. The first of these was just a thought that came across my head. I am thankfully connected to a great company named Mutt Society that gives back to communities like mine, all around the world. As I pondered how I would go about presenting this idea I met the special events coordinator, Molly Reynolds. I mentioned that I could talk with the company and set them up with some bikes or at least one bike a month. For the homeless that could change their entire life. I also remain in close contact with Molly and I plan on doing a bike clinic to teach people how to fix bikes on their own and also I would fix some for free. After talking with her at the end of the event, I went out and waited for my ride. That’s where I met Sam, a middle aged looking man. We talked a lot about fentanyl and it’s damage to Hartford and it’s homeless population. He mentioned that crack runs rampant throughout the city and fentanyl is literally everywhere. I was loving our conversation but sadly my Mom showed up and I was left with a lot more questions, but a full heart and a lot of happiness.
