Updates, Volunteer Opportunities & Donation News

Dear Lex Eat Together Volunteers and Friends,
It’s hard to believe, but we’ve already had five successful meals since our “soft opening” on October 14!  We’ve served 160 meals to guests so far, reaching individuals, families with children, young, old, you name it.  In other words, it’s a diverse group representing our community.  Some have been our guests only once, others have come on a regular basis, and most important of all, all are welcome.  

Not only are all welcome, but all have been caringly welcomed to our dinners and helped to feel at home by our amazing volunteers.  It’s not just the warmth and helpfulness of serving teams and greeters, who are our “front line” in contact with our guests; it’s also the care our setup teams put into turning the hall into a comfortable communal dining room, it’s the delicious, beautifully presented meals our cooking team and our Minuteman Career and Technical School partners have so carefully prepared, and it’s our cleanup volunteers who quietly and efficiently return the hall and kitchen to its prior state (or even a bit better!)   All have contributed to the experience for our guests being more than just a plate of food-together, we have made this a special experience for all who walk through our doors.  Thank you!  Special thanks go to Wilma Ronco and Susan Orenstein who have taken on “team captain” roles leading our Setup and Serving teams, respectively, helping to orient new and returning volunteers and generally making things go smoothly for all involved!
We know we are just getting started with this effort, and we know we will continue to learn and improve as we go forward.  It’s been very heartwarming to see our volunteers suggesting new ideas or enthusiastically embracing new ways to enhance the experience for everyone.  We are so fortunate to have tapped into the wellspring of dedication and collaboration our volunteers bring to Lex Eat Together.  While we are just getting started, we shouldn’t lose sight of what we’ve built together in a short time.

Getting the Word Out

We continue to spread the word on Lex Eat Together, which we know will be an ongoing effort.  Not only is this important in reaching potential guests in and around Lexington, it’s also vital as we build awareness around Lexington about the important work we are doing.  And it’s critical as we seek to raise the funds to support our effort into the future.  Suzanne O’Neil has graciously agreed to serve as our Communications Director to help us reach all of the audiences important to us: potential guests, donors, community leaders and volunteers.  Suzanne brings professional experience in communications and fundraising, along with an evident empathy for our guests and the challenges they face, and we are delighted to have her serve in this critical role!

Among the tools we have is a Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/LexEatTogether/.  If you are a Facebook user, please visit and “like” our page-this will help us raise our visibility.  And in case you may have missed it, here is a link to the Lexington Minuteman article written after our first dinner:  
http://lexington.wickedlocal.com/article/20151101/NEWS/151109640/0/SEARCH
Volunteer Opportunities

As of today, we have a few openings to volunteer for our December 2 (one server) and December 30 (one clean up volunteer and one server) dates-otherwise, we are fully staffed through the end of the year!  Thank you all for making this work so well.  We do also have a number of volunteer opportunities for times other than the Wednesday meal times, including:

• help with food pickups and shopping (mostly Mondays and Tuesdays)
• putting up posters and distributing cards to locations around Lexington and surrounding towns (can be any day of the week)
• volunteers with grant-writing experience to help pursue some good opportunities with prospective donors (as needed)

Please contact George Murnaghan (gmurnaghan@verizon.net) or drop a note to lexeattogether@gmail.com if you would be interested in helping with any of these.

We’ll open up the signups for January through March in early December, with a “heads-up” announcement a week or so in advance so you can be ready when the Signup Genius is available.  Please bear with us if you are finding it difficult to find times that match your availability-we truly need everyone to make this successful over the long haul!
Now Accepting Online Donations 
Just in time to participate in Giving Tuesday, we are pleased to announce that we now have an online donations capability on the Lex Eat Together website:  http://www.lexeattogether.org/donate.html through PayPal (You don’t need a PayPal account to make a gift).  Donations may also be made by check payable to Lex Eat Together and sent to:  Lex Eat Together 34 Wachusett Drive, Lexington, MA 02421.
Please enjoy a wonderful holiday season knowing that you have helped bring food, comfort and community to so many people.  
In gratitude,
Harriet Kaufman    Laura Derby    George Murnaghan    John Bernhard