The two organizations have supported each other’s work in the past and recently combined their efforts to better serve local youth. The Commons constructed an addition to its building into which WIN installed a refurbished automat-style vending machine that dispenses food to those in need.

“We transitioned from a residential-style fridge to a vending machine to improve food safety,” says Miriam Coates, director of programs for WIN. “To minimize waste, the machine offers healthy à la carte items that enable people to make their own selections.”

In true South Whidbey barn-raising style, the addition to the Commons building was designed by architect Ross Chapin, who donated his time and resources, and built by South Whidbey Commons board members Jim Shelver and Ron Norman with a great deal of help from volunteers Don Zontine, Kurt Hoelting, and Barton Cole. Hanson’s Building Supply donated skylights, Jim Shelver donated roofing materials, and John Clark donated the electrical hook-up. The vending machine was made possible by a grant that the Paul Glaser Foundation awarded to WIN, and the alcove for it was partially funded by Walt Blackford, who hosted a free showing of The Wizard of Oz at the Clyde Theater on his 60th birthday and encouraged attendees to donate toward the alcove’s construction.

“This is a safe place for kids to come,” says Shelver, who oversaw construction of the project. “Here, they have the privacy to accept the gift of free food with dignity.”

“We’re excited about this transition,” adds Coates. “The site here at the Commons is ideal. They were our first partnering site, and the collaboration meshes well with what we’re both trying to do: offer community support for local youth.”

The food that WIN offers is lovingly and respectfully prepared by volunteers, and the vending machine is stocked with sandwiches, fruit, yogurt, string cheese, and WIN’s signature trail mix. “People are often surprised that good nutrition tastes so good,” says Margaret Andersen, WIN’s treasurer/secretary. “The peanut butter sandwiches are the best,” agrees one of the teenagers trying out the new vending machine.

“Childhood hunger is detrimental to healthy development and academic success,” says Coates. “We give kids the nourishment to do what they need to do.”

One of the things kids eventually need to do is learn how to support themselves, and inside the Coffeehouse Bookstore, middle- and high school students receive academic credit while learning to work successfully in a café. The training they receive improves their self-esteem, employability, and career prospects. But there are additional benefits—some of them unexpected.

“I’m thankful for the Commons because of the community it gave me,” says a former barista trainee. “It really helped me to blossom into the person I wanted to be. For the first time, I felt like I belonged somewhere. It gave me a haven from a bad home life, so that I never wanted to leave!”

WIN and the Commons are pleased with their collaboration and have received positive feedback about the new vending machine and its location. Although no coins are required to dispense food, the vending machine’s coin slot is set up to accept donations.

Both nonprofits encourage members of the community to get involved, volunteer, and support the island’s young people through their organizations. For more information about WIN, see WhidbeyIslandNourishes.org and SouthWhidbeyCommons.org.

Nonprofits collaborate to feed and empower youth

A partnership between Whidbey Island Nourishes (WIN) and the South Whidbey Commons feeds young people and empowers them to support themselves through job training. For nearly five years, hungry youth and adults have benefitted from free meals and healthy snacks that WIN volunteers have prepared and placed in a refrigerator located behind the South Whidbey Commons Coffeehouse Bookstore. Meanwhile, inside the building, students and adults have participated in a workplace training program that makes them better candidates for further education or employment elsewhere.  

The two organizations have supported each other’s work in the past and recently combined their efforts to better serve local youth. The Commons constructed an addition to its building into which WIN installed a refurbished automat-style vending machine that dispenses food to those in need.

“We transitioned from a residential-style fridge to a vending machine to improve food safety,” says Miriam Coates, director of programs for WIN. “To minimize waste, the machine offers healthy à la carte items that enable people to make their own selections.”

In true South Whidbey barn-raising style, the addition to the Commons building was designed by architect Ross Chapin, who donated his time and resources, and built by South Whidbey Commons board members Jim Shelver and Ron Norman with a great deal of help from volunteers Don Zontine, Kurt Hoelting, and Barton Cole. Hanson’s Building Supply donated skylights, Jim Shelver donated roofing materials, and John Clark donated the electrical hook-up. The vending machine was made possible by a grant that the Paul Glaser Foundation awarded to WIN, and the alcove for it was partially funded by Walt Blackford, who hosted a free showing of The Wizard of Oz at the Clyde Theater on his 60th birthday and encouraged attendees to donate toward the alcove’s construction.

“This is a safe place for kids to come,” says Shelver, who oversaw construction of the project. “Here, they have the privacy to accept the gift of free food with dignity.”

 “We’re excited about this transition,” adds Coates. “The site here at the Commons is ideal. They were our first partnering site, and the collaboration meshes well with what we’re both trying to do: offer community support for local youth.”

The food that WIN offers is lovingly and respectfully prepared by volunteers, and the vending machine is stocked with sandwiches, fruit, yogurt, string cheese, and WIN’s signature trail mix. “People are often surprised that good nutrition tastes so good,” says Margaret Andersen, WIN’s treasurer/secretary. “The peanut butter sandwiches are the best,” agrees one of the teenagers trying out the new vending machine.

“Childhood hunger is detrimental to healthy development and academic success,” says Coates. “We give kids the nourishment to do what they need to do.”

One of the things kids eventually need to do is learn how to support themselves, and inside the Coffeehouse Bookstore, middle- and high school students receive academic credit while learning to work successfully in a café. The training they receive improves their self-esteem, employability, and career prospects. But there are additional benefits—some of them unexpected.

“I’m thankful for the Commons because of the community it gave me,” says a former barista trainee. “It really helped me to blossom into the person I wanted to be. For the first time, I felt like I belonged somewhere. It gave me a haven from a bad home life, so that I never wanted to leave!”

WIN and the Commons are pleased with their collaboration and have received positive feedback about the new vending machine and its location. Although no coins are required to dispense food, the vending machine’s coin slot is set up to accept donations.

Both nonprofits encourage members of the community to get involved, volunteer, and support the island’s young people through their organizations. For more information, see WhidbeyIslandNourishes.org and SouthWhidbeyCommons.org.

In fact, it was so successful that we plan to have another Harvest Gala in 2012. Mark your calendar now for the evening of October 27. See you there!

Photos © 2011 Muriel Hastings

[Show as slideshow]

12►

Volunteering at the Commons has helped Haley and Hanna get to know people they wouldn’t otherwise have met and has also given them skills they’ll soon apply when they go to college. “I got a job at the University of Portland that I’m going to start soon,” says Hanna. “I feel more prepared for it because I’ve had this experience—even though the new job doesn’t deal with food. The organizing and communication skills I gained will be helpful anywhere.”

Haley and Hanna feel nostalgic about the fact that their carefree summers on Whidbey Island are coming to an end. They recall the years during which their parents fixed up a summer home in the Maxwelton area—a time when they discovered that even the beach can get monotonous after a while. So, when Julie saw an ad for volunteer baristas in the South Whidbey Record, they investigated, and the girls soon began volunteering.

“You volunteer for a limited amount of time.” says Julie. “It’s like a vacation from your vacation.” Although she’d wanted to volunteer herself from the beginning, she allowed her daughters to have the experience to themselves until last year, when she also began volunteering.

“Haley and I played an integral part in training our mom,” says Hanna. “We were constantly quizzing her on things like the order of drink preparation,” adds Haley.

“The experience of dealing with the public has really brought the girls out of their shells,” says Julie, who discovered that she liked working with high-school-aged volunteers, and enjoyed building their confidence.

“Volunteering at the Commons is a lot of responsibility,” says Hanna. “But it’s fun.” The Herrins have had so much fun, in fact, that they’re not yet willing for it to come to an end. “We’re going to volunteer during Christmas break,” says Haley.

This story was published in the South Whidbey Record on August 17, 2011.

Heartfelt thanks to Tree-Top Bakers for the delicious cake they donated, board member Ted Brookes and his daughter Lisabeth Miller for the yummy donated Hotdogs on a Stick and lemonade. Many thanks, too, to the board, staff, and volunteers, including Dell Wolfensparger, Sean Morphew, Austin Free, Meaghan De Wolf, Robin Barre, Amanda Potter, Couran Therien, Amanda Gonzales, Keppi Ross, Amelia Weeks, Gail Riek, and Chris Turpen–none of it would have been possible without their efforts.

Darcy’s reflections

I get asked often, “Why do you serve in the AmeriCorps?” as if being a member was a conscious choice and to some extent it is: I applied to the program and meet all the required terms of service. Personally, however, it just seems as if it was something that fit, something that met what I was looking for in life both personally and professionally. Working with The Commons is a vastly different AmeriCorps experience from what others tell me. I am certain I’ve washed more dishes than typical volunteers, yet it is a place I feel not only meets the AmeriCorps vision, but benefits from partnering with the service corps. The things that excite me about being a volunteer here are the connections with students and the community at large that I have been able to form, the collaboration and creation that comes from being involved here, and a sense of ownership and pride volunteers take in their work at the coffeehouse. Most of the time, my role is to provide the manpower needed to further goals that are bigger than my tenure.

The AmeriCorps was almost lost as a service program in the nation. I know how vital the role we, as members, play in the community. While our site might only have two AmeriCorps members, our positions here facilitate more than 60 volunteers, encouraging them to learn, build connections, and serve their own community. For me, those elements of the program are ambitions I hold for my future and the AmeriCorps is a way for me to gain experience and serve at the same time. I believe being here provides only a greater launch pad for future endeavors.

Tracie’s reflections

Serving as an AmeriCorps member with the South Whidbey Commons has certainly been a unique experience. While many of my newly found AmeriCorps friends spend their days fundraising, schmoozing, doing administrative tasks and planning large events to raise awareness of their respective organizations, I generally spend my day shooting the breeze with customers, directing our middle school apprentices and high school interns, cleaning up messes from training attempts gone wrong, and answering questions like, “Are we out of vanilla? Can I drink this cup full of chocolate? Why do I have to do dishes again? Are real jobs really like this?”

Okay, I’ll admit it: on rare occasion, my job feels like babysitting. There are times that I want self-sufficiency for the students I work with, mostly so that I don’t have to hear my name called every 4 minutes. Such times, however, are few and far between and can generally be attributed to external variables like dreary weather, lack of sleep, slow business, or basic ignorance. When feelings of frustration or annoyance arise, it’s unquestionably due to my disregard for intentionality and my ignorance of the fact that every situation with these kids is an opportunity to model positive behavior, healthy conversation, patience, and guidance. I’ve begun to realize over the course of my months at The Commons just how influential taking an interest in somebody can be. Conversations with students about further education have led to them applying to college and vocational schools. Interactions with customers have resulted in securing consistent monetary donations and community support for Commons programs. Taking time to cater to students with increased need has resulted in increased self-sufficiency and confidence for them. It has been amazing to see the growth of the community web since starting here in September 2010.

At The Commons, personal reward comes in many forms: measurable improvements in a student’s skill; a positive, thought-provoking conversation with a customer or volunteer; a well-earned compliment on a coffee or food product; a new volunteer showing up for drop-in community service; each day, I find encouragement at The Commons. As is its mission, it has become my third place. I’m blessed to have spent my first year with AmeriCorps here at the South Whidbey Commons.

• Aromatic coffee from Mukilteo Coffee Roasters, which is located outside Langley, and Honeymoon Bay Coffee Roasters, which is located in Oak Harbor.
• Delicious cookies, scones, loaf cakes, and muffins that are prepared and frozen by Larry Lowary and Gerry Betz of Tree-Top Baking. We bake them up fresh every morning.
• Chewy bagels, which are locally made at Kiichili’s Bagel Bakery.

The South Whidbey Commons is all about community, and we appreciate the fact that our community produces so many delicious things!

Of course, there are a few guidelines, but they are pretty easy to follow. So if you, or someone you know, is interested in offering a class, discussion group, workshop, or activity, check out this overview and contact us via e-mail at communications@swcommons.com . To enlarge the document, double click on it, then click on it again.

It’s the end of February, and we’re all so excited about the approach of spring…but it looks like it might be delayed a bit! The snow is falling in stop-start fashion here today, and we’re hearing talk of more to come tonight and tomorrow. We’ll see.

In the meantime, mark your calendar for Friday. Jim Freeman will be in the front room, hosting a poetry slam! It will be so much fun!!!! 7-9pm, February 25.

As for this snow? We’ll see what happens. If you are ever concerned about whether or not an event is cancelled because of weather…check here