September 2010
Bezerra de Menezes Food Pantry Report
Bezerra de Menezes Kardecian Spiritist Center 6450 NW 77th Ct 2nd Floor Miami Fl 33166 www.spiritist.com/fp
It
is 11 in the morning and we are still waiting for our
kind of hit some right notes, but still, I wasn’t ready to look the other way and let myself off the hook.
shipment to be pulled out in the Food Bank warehouse. We expected to be out of there by 11:45 AM, with enough time to deliver the food products to the food pantry and be on time to pick up my son at school, he comes out at 2:20 PM. Now a pallet is pulled up to the dock and the warehouse attendant tell us to go to bay 2. It is 11:40 AM we just finished loading the truck ready to bring the food to the distribution site. We received 1300 Lbs of food products for distribution, fron the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). The truck was full, and I even had to place some cereal boxes inside the truck cabin. On our way to the distribution site I had to stop on a red traffic light. While I waited for the green I noticed what looked like a homeless person holding a sign, “need food” it read. I thought perfect, let me give him something, but then came to my mind, “everything back there is tight up with a rope”,” it looks like is going to rain”. Then I thought “well at least I can give him some cereal”, but then “look, these are USDA products, you cannot just give them away on the street, there is a procedure.” At this point I got the green light and the car behind me started honking, so I left. It was 1:10 PM when I finished unloading the boxes from the truck to the food pantry, but in my mind the image of the homeless, apparently careless, holding his sign was stuck in my mind. Thoughts like, “are you going to help only those who can come to you?”; “Aren’t these products suppose to go to the hungry and needy?” Well, ideas came back and forth the rest of the day. By 2:30 PM my son was by my side on the truck, we were on our way home, and of course I told him what had happened. He didn’t say anything. It was like my story had a problem and solution at the same time, but I didn’t see it, so that didn’t help. At night I was telling my wife what happened but she interrupted me to say “you shouldn’t be putting so much weight on the truck”, “You are going to get a ticket one of these days”....That didn’t help me either. Few days later I was with some friends at Bezerra and I told them the story and how bad I was feeling for not knowing what to do, most of them just listened, but one told me “Luis, you need to free yourself from that situation, stop blaming yourself; you were doing something good already.” His words
Few weeks passed, maybe two months and I got to see a movie: the life of Mother Teresa. While watching it suddenly found consolation to my action. There was this scene where Mother Teresa was riding on a bus and while looking through the window she saw a woman sitting on the street that looked in really bad shape. Mother Teresa continued to the bus station and walked to her house and told other sisters “come help me” and ordered another one to call an ambulance. The group of sisters and Mother Teresa walked back to the place where she had seen the dying woman. To her surprise she wasn’t there anymore so she asked a man who was sitting next and he said: She died, they just took her away” While Mother Teresa is still shocked listening the man’s words the siren of the ambulance announces that is coming. I felt relieved, because I understood that is not to jump head first into the problems but to analize them, and make sure that we have the tools to make a difference in the situation. It didn’t feel right just to throw a box of cereal and then having to deny it because I’d be breaking the rules of the USDA contract. Mother Teresa helped millions, still does, we can’t pretend to have all the answers all the time, let’s just try to follow those ahead of us. Mother Teresa gave me hope, and I’m sure Dr. Bezerra will put many others in my way, giving me the opportunitty to practice the teachings of our Divine Master Jesus Christ. By Luis Salazar Manager Bezerra de Menezes Food Pantry
Can you spare some change? Dear friends of BM Food Pantry, as you know, times are tough, many people have lost their jobs and it is taking more than expected the bouncing back of the economy. Many families are hurting, in BM Food Pantry, we can only help a few hundred families, but our phone keeps ringing; people from all faiths are coming to our doors, asking for help. The other day a friend told me: "When you squeeze an orange, you get orange juice. You never get apple juice or tomato juice." That gave me an idea, if you squeeze people filled with love, we'll get love....................... It is not our intention to squeeze you, but to look into your eyes and honestly ask you:
FACTS
Can you spare some change? Any amount will help. You can mail a check or use your credit card online. Your donation can be deducted from your Income Tax return, since we are a non profit 501 (c) (3) organization. Visit our web site www.spiritist.com/fp to make a donation online, safe and easy through Paypal.
Florida Statistical Brief: Food Insecurity Rate: 12.2% Child Food Insecurity Rate: 20.8%
Thanks so much for your support, stop by our distribution center and take a look to the real people and listen real stories.
Population: 18,328,340
God Bless you and your family,
Child Poverty Rate: 18.3%
BM Food Pantry team
Unemployment Rate: 12.0%
Poverty Rate: 12.4%
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Sabia Ud. que el BM Food Pantry necesita $150 para atender 120 familias semanalmente? Sabia Ud. que su donación al Food Pantry impacta directamente a una familia de la comunidad y es deducible en su declaración federal de impuestos? Sabia Ud. que 60% de nuestros clientes son niños? Sabia Ud. que 98% de las familias nunca habían visitado una Casa Espirita Kardeciana? Sabia Ud. que 100% de las familias que nos visitan llevan además de alimentos, un material de lectura edificante espirita para su hogar?
Hearts that speak I
had been hearing about this “food pantry”
initiative, had made material contribution to it, and had even seen it from the “outside”. I had seen people unloading boxes of food, and packing them into this small room for handling and eventually distribution to the needy. But it was only after I decided to see it from the inside that I could have a feel for what it really is, and what it really means to people.
family members. And thanks to the language of the heart, I could experience a feeling that evening at the “Bezerra de Menezes food pantry” that is certainly “not of this world”. It is a superior feeling, one of those which human language cannot yet translate into words. However, the eyes, the facial expression, the broken words in their lips, the loose hand movements, and particularly the positive vibration emanating from the souls of those at the receiving side of the counter tells us everything, unmistakably.
That happened just a few days ago when myself and my wife decided to get actively involved, i.e. be in the other side of the counter where a number of reps from poor families drop their empty cardboard boxes to be filled in with at least some of what they need to survive and feed their kids, spouses, and others during the coming week. Some come with a smile on their face, some with tears in their eyes, and some with a hand on top of their stomach as if they were saying: be patient just a little longer. These are not just words to dramatize the picture; actually, I just realized that it will be impossible to describe the feelings of those that come from, sometimes, a long distance, wait silently for a couple of hours, and then travel back home with a box of food. What would they be thinking as they travel back home? How would they feel as they put some food on their tables for their kids and relatives? I truly don’t know the answers to the above questions. I never felt hungry for lack of food at home. I never had to beg for a piece of bread, a can of beans, a box of rice, or anything. And I have always been grateful to God for never having to starve, or for not having any clothes to wear. But, at my present stage in life, what I am really thankful to God for is my sensitivity to the needs of those whose trials in this life include a severe deprivation of what to eat or serve to their dearest
The efforts to organize the “BM food pantry” are huge. It takes hours and hours of physical work, and a number of volunteers that are prepared to make time available to perform the job in preparation for the evening of distribution. Someone has to go get the food somewhere, as it does not come on their own, although some are actually delivered at the pantry. But the physical part is just physical as it says. A number of blessed minds have to worry about the finance and to motivate donors to help with either money or food on a continuous basis. What if people came to get their cardboard boxes filled and there was not enough food?
Well, I can’t hide my emotions any longer: the people behind the “BM food pantry” initiative must have something in their hearts that makes all the difference. Suffice to say that each family representative that comes to the pantry to get food is treated with love and care. Many of them not only take home a basket of food, but also a kiss and a hug. Everything is done in a way that makes every family enjoy the food they are receiving without any unhealthy feelings that people in need are bound to experience in such situations.
Imagine Imagine you don’t have what you have Imagine you don’t know what you know Imagine not having the life that you have You are blank Now bring to yourself some chronic illness Now bring to yourself some learning disability Now bring to yourself many people who depend on you
To finalize, I can’t stress enough what a wonderful act of love it would be for all of those reading this letter to make a contribution to the Bezerra de Menezes Food Pantry, given the impact of such initiative in people’s lives. And if you could come and help the distribution of food, even for one evening, I can promise you that you won’t ever be the same person again --- this is what happened to my wife and I.
You are somebody else Now imagine that you have what is yours, including health and posessions Now imagine yourself knowing and learning everything you need Now imagine many people who will eat today thanks to you
God bless you all.
You are a better person now
Marcia & Gilberto
Imagine yourself sharing with strangers what took you sweat and tears to earn
Bezerra de Menezes Food Pantry is a social program managed by the Bezerra de Menezes Kardecian Spiritist Center in Miami Fl. BM Food Pantry was founded in February 2009 to provide supplemental food to families and individuals in need, in the Miami Dade Countiy area. Our services and products are free of charge and we rely on private donations to fund this program.
Imagine yourself sharing with strangers what you know, your life experience Imagine yourself sharing with strangers your thoughts You are an Angel now Peace be with you
Our distribution schedule is Fridays from 6 PM to 7:30 PM and Sundays from 2 PM to 3:30 PM. It is suggested to make an appointment to assure enough food for all visitors. Make your appointment calling to 786.346.7709, you can also send a text message or an email to fp@spiritist.com 6450 NW 77th Ct, Miami Florida 33166
This table represents a goal of $2,000 a month to fund the Bezerra de Menezes Food Pantry. 200 Friends sending $10/month 100 Friends sending $20/month 50 Friends sending $40/month
TAKE THE PLEDGE and become an angel for a 20 19 18 17 16
family in distress. Adopt-a-family with as little as $10/month. Our goal is to serve 200 families per week, right now we are providing food products to 95 families per week of more than 800 families signed up in the program. We need your help. We need $10 or $20 from you to get us in the way to achieve our goal.
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200 families per week. TAKE THE PLEDGE and become part of the solution.
12 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Send a check payable to: Bezerra de Menezes to 6450 NW 77th Ct Miami Fl 33166 – Ph 305.477.4148 write on the MEMO: Food Pantry
$10 represents 52 Lbs of food or 3 days worth of food for a family of four.
TAKE THE PLEDGE and be part of the new world. Help us to fill up stomachs and to touch souls by helping us to fill with blue the squares.