The Eclipse Project: Helping Harrisburg's Homeless

I'm putting this here. I'm late. I know. It's been a heck of a week! I am probably going to add to this post as I think of things, but for right now, here's a bunch of food that we served to approximately 130 people on Sunday!

There are so many people I need to thank that I don't even know where to start. Donors, volunteers, our differently sheltered friends... If I can ever get my scrambled brains together, I will try to put everybody here. Give me some time. I'm working on it. 🫪

Inside the biggest homeless encampment in York, PA before city's "compassionate" clear-out Bantz Park was home to York, Pennsylvania's biggest homeless encamp...

It's getting chilly. Get your Eclipse hoodie for the fall weather.

Still need a couple cleanup people!

Getting a jump on Fridays volunteer check-in day. One of my volunteers is in Florida helping a childhood friend who's waiting on an organ transplant. Another one is away this weekend. We have two people out for a corn maze until the end of next month. We need bodies!

Food prep at the address in our profile picture from 11:00 a.m. until 2:00 p.m.

Serving two locations from 2:30 until 5:30.

Clean up back at the church from 6:30 until about 8:30. The more people we have, the less time it takes.

Jerry all day
Emma
Savannah, Carol, Aunt Ash, Kaitie, Sarah, Kathy at noon kitchen prep
Ally+3 serving 2:30 to 4:30 only.
Beth serving.
Arleen prep and serving.
Alexa possible.
Who else is coming?

We definitely accept new volunteers! Let me know if you have any questions.

Remembering our friend Terry today. Received the news last week that he passed away during the night, reportedly of a heart attack, last Monday evening. He always had a smile. He was always one of the first people we saw when we pulled in and he would help us set up and crack dad jokes. Please, if anyone has any photos of him, forward them to me so that we can make a photo board and have a meal in his memory. Prayers for peace for his family and friends.

I took exactly two pictures on Sunday and neither one of them were of food. It was a hectic day and I was negligent in my picture taking duties. I tried to find some old pictures of the same recipes we served on Sunday but I'm just accepting defeat. I'll do better next week, I promise.

Sunday, we served:
Sausage and peppers two ways
Buffalo chicken macaroni and cheese
Homemade chicken nuggets
General tso's chicken with rice and broccoli
Chicken spaghetti
Nonna's spaghetti with banana peppers
Cowboy casserole
Salad
Potato salad
Coleslaw
Bagel sandwiches with egg, tuna, or chicken salad
Southwest chicken soup
Desserts, birthday cake, brownies, muffins, and other deliciosities
The concoction. I don't know what else to call it. I had a gallon of corn and jalapenos from Chipotle. I had some cooked cubed chicken breast from Country Gourmet. I had a bunch of spring onions, a couple peppers from someone's yard, a couple kinds of shredded cheese, and two containers of hot crab dip from Country Gourmet. I mixed it all together in a burst of spontaneity and it was the most requested thing when people came back for seconds!

Thank you, Bethany Church of the Nazarene for your kitchen, Country Gourmet at the Market and Panera Bread for your food donations, to everyone who donated ingredients and prepared food and other items this week, and to my lovely volunteers Jerry, Bob, Carol, Kaitie, Arleen, Danielle, Crystal, Marcy, Thomas, Molly, Sam, Hunter, Claire, and Melanie? I called her Marjorie on Sunday. Is it Melanie? Ally, help me!

I realized Sunday that I used to be someone for whom prayer was a very private thing that I did by myself or possibly with just one other person and this introvert is now able to say grace out loud with my whole face in front of 100 people. Watch me grow as a human!

I have to get a special shout out to Crystal. She jumps in and helps serve when we need her. She offered to help us this Sunday and it turns out we had enough volunteers for all the serving stations but she asked if maybe she should just hang around and fill in when needed. She kept things running! She kept everything stocked. She jumped in to different stations when she was needed. She even came with us to our second stop to help us set up and serve there. We were all dripping wet by the time we were done because it rained just before we started putting up our canopies and we still had to go back and forth to the van to replenish things and she didn't skip a beat.

We have discovered we either need one big canopy or we need a very large tarp. We put up two 10x10 canopies over the tables and of course where the two canopies meet, it was a waterfall. How big are the biggest tarps? We would need at least 10x20 ft and possibly some clamps to hold it onto the canopies. Fortunately, at our first stop we are under cover but our second stop is right out there in the open and we're just raw do**in' life with all the wild weather and stuff.

We are starting to accept warm weather clothing so please no more shorts, tank tops, sundresses, sandals, etc. I know it still feels very warm out during the day, but when you're essentially sleeping outside, it's a tad chilly.

Congratulations to two of our friends who were baptized on Saturday! So proud. Looking forward to seeing the video.

We have a vegan friend who has started coming to see us again so I make an honest attempt to have something special for her every week. I have this lovely ADHD trait called rejection sensitivity dysphoria so I'm always afraid I'm going to give her something that she's not crazy about and then it would make me super sad! I handed her a container of potatoes O'Brien and some pulled "pork" barbecue made with jackfruit. I always label her container with exactly what's inside of it and, when I handed it to her, I said that I hoped she was going to like it. She's so sweet and super appreciative to me every single time I see her but Sunday, she said "you always hit the mark, Ms. Michon." 🥰 If anyone has any good vegan recipe suggestions, bring them on!

We also have a new guy at our second stop who is a pescatarian so I will keep that in mind and put something aside for him each week.

We always have lots of requests for work boots for the guys that are second stop who are looking for employment. So if you have any men's work boots, or you see any good sales, please think of us! Some of them need steel toe and some of them don't.

Pray for us in our travels and for our differently sheltered friends. ❤️ And please feel free to share our posts!

What? It's Friday again already? Who's coming this Sunday to volunteer? Today is volunteer check-in day for this weekend.
11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. food prep.
2:30 until 5:30. Serving at two locations.
After 5:30 until we're done, clean up.

Jerry all day.
Emma 11 a.m. until she drops.
Arleen prep.
Bob prep and cleanup.
Marcy, Sam +3 serving.

We could use a couple more in the kitchen and one or two more to help clean up.

Sunday we served
Dozens and dozens of homemade jalapeno poppers
Homemade guacamole
Chicken and rice with corn and beans and a selection of salsas and pico de gallo
Pizza
Stuffed shells
Chicken and rice
Chili topped with cornbread
Sausage and peppas (You have to say it that way)
Meatballs
Three big pans of jalapeno cornbread
Buffalo chicken dip mac and cheese
Green beans
Country style ribs with barbecue sauce
Pork tenderloin with homemade teriyaki glaze
Birthday cake for Steven
Sandwiches, desserts, drinks and some more stuff I'm sure I forgot.

Thank you Bethany Church of the Nazarene for your kitchen, Country Gourmet at the Market and Panera Bread, those who picked up and delivered food donations, and everyone who dropped off items this week. We got a big donation of pork!

Thank you to my lovely assistants Jerry, Savannah, Emma, Danielle, Carol, Kinsley, two Ashleys, Arleen, Bob, Crystal, did I forget anyone? I really should write these things down.

The gentleman we gave the bicycle to last week was so happy to show it off this week and to say thank you again!

We are still looking for size 3x sweats or scrubs. Please mark them with an M to call our attention to them and make sure we get them to the right person.

Thank you to everyone who drops off pre-made food for us and to Carol for being our expediter and birthday cake baker and Emma who went with me on Saturday for 5 hours of running errands. Every bit helps. Every time Danielle takes the dish towels to wash or Rachel and Safa stop by with a big pan of something delicious or someone takes time out of their Saturday to bring us the Panera donations, it is all appreciated.

When Steven blew out his birthday candle, he said his one wish was to get housed.

Please pray for our friends.

❤️