In the 25 years or so of schooling I have, I have never thought about spending my Spring Break doing anything like Volunteer Odyssey, but after Day 1 at MIFA delivering food for Meals on Wheels, I’m very happy about my non-traditional vacation. I pass MIFA at least 10 times a week, and several of my classmates work there, but I’ve never spent much time learning about their programs. That has been an epic failure on my part. Meals on Wheels is one of the best volunteer opportunities I’ve been a part of in Memphis. I now know why so many people volunteer their time there on a regular basis: the team at MIFA is very friendly and well organized. Food is delivered in teams of two, and each team is given a methodical delivery schedule and two coolers – one for hot food and one for cold drinks. The meal recipient gets a small carton of both milk and grape juice and a hot meal with meat, steamed vegetables, a sweet cobbler-like fruit, and a slice of bread. Admittedly, today’s turkey smelled pretty amazing!

Overall, it was an amazing experience, and I would highly recommend this program to other volunteers. It is easy, only takes about an hour, and the people you meet along the way are highly appreciative and interesting individuals, who manage to show a lot of personality in a very short period of time.