Headline: Probst Volunteers at Maine Soup Kitchen
I would like to commend Jeff Probst the host of CBS show Survivor. He and Julie Berry a former contestant now dating each other volunteered at a soup kitchen in Maine to serve Christmas dinner. The event received praise and great fanfare by the new media. I want to vilify the press for not giving the same praise and fanfare to my friends Carl and Sally Barnes of Croton on the Hudson, New York for volunteering at their local soup kitchen for years. They are the face of the thousands of people who do volunteer every year selflessly and not just on holidays.
Why the uproar?
There are multiple reasons and some are very personal. The article I read gave me the impression this was not something that Probst has done before. Could the experience been a whim, an awakening or from the influence of his relationship with Julie Berry? Instead, we got a cliché bound blurb about volunteering. I found the story demeaning and lacking the true vision in exploring the full human interest of the story. Others who regularly volunteer may have gotten the same sense. Too many times, I have experienced those who came just so they could go home and say "look at me" at the holiday family gathering. Yet, while they were there for an hour to an hour and a half, they mostly stood around and chatted with friends segregating themselves from the clients as if these people were invisible wall.
This past Christmas while volunteering at the Trenton Area Soup Kitchen (TASK), I watched as a drop dead gorgeous mother and daughter team arrived for their shift. You could smell their $200 a bottle perfume from across the room. Both women took one look around; the daughter shook her head as if to say, "I don't think so." The Mom appeared to gesture in agreement and they left. The fear of breaking a nail must have been tremendous.
Who are the real stars?
The Carls and Sallys all over the country that donate their time not just for an hour and half and not just for Thanksgiving and Christmas they are the unknowns. These people are the real stars. Some are wealthy and some are dirt poor, but they volunteer as equals. These are the people who quietly appear and help, when they see it is needed and they are able. There are people who find time throughout the year to volunteer to make a difference and not say look what I did. These are the everyday people who should receive the notoriety that Jeff and Julie did, but do not. These people are stars because they do what they do and do not need to be on camera or in the newswires. They just do what they do and go home.
Are there other stars?
I met an amazing woman I will call Maria. In recovery from both drug and alcohol addiction, she worked volunteering from early morning to closing on the holidays. You can learn about her at www.socyberty.com/Holidays/A-Holiday-Legacy.10474. Maria serves as the face of another type of unknown that may not have much, but always have something to give. They are the real stars who even if they do not have a dollar to give, they will hand over their pennies. Moreover, some like Maria fight their own battles day by day while spreading their light to others. No one makes them a headline unless it is for wrong reasons.
How do I fit in here?
I worked both holidays from 8 am to closing and I do not consider myself one of those stars. In one fashion or another, I volunteered quietly for many years. I took a couple of years off because I felt my family needed me more. I returned to volunteering last year. I was new to the area, so it was my first at TASK. I met the Marias and the Russ's and realized how little I gave in the past compared to them. I gained a new perspective. Jeff Probst spoke of gaining perspective in his interview. My perspective was of where I stood in comparison to the Marias and Russ's. His was more in line of being a person who has viewing those who are have nots. More than likely, I stepped up from Jeff's level. The difference is he has the star power to shed the light on the Carls and Sallys as well as the Marias and Russ's. Therefore, my job is to say thank you to everyone who helped someone less fortunate the pass year and will continue to do so in the years ahead. Hey, Jeff and Julie will you join me in doing the same?
