Wednesday, April 24, 2013

And we're back...

Hello Des Moines!

This is Aaron Schlumbohm, one of your two new Action Corps Organizers for this next year, the other being my esteemed colleague Kelly Buffalo. We are both recently returned from a 4 day training with Oxfam America staff in Washington D.C. Present were volunteers from 15 cities that Oxfam America has identified as important in the global fight against poverty, hunger, & injustice... and we're proud that Des Moines, IA is one of them. While there we had the opportunity to learn more about Oxfam's mission & ongoing campaigns, and to talk with staff from the offices of Congressman Latham and Senators Grassley and Harkin about the President's proposals to Reform US Food Aid. It was a great experience and I hope that if you're reading this you'll consider seizing this opportunity to take a leadership role in Oxfam Action Corps next year!

Since we've been back we had the opportunity to table at Earth Day in the Junction talking about Oxfam with the community and collecting petitions supporting food aid reform. We're also transitioning with last year's organizers Amy & Lance. We're hoping to continue the outstanding work they've done organizing events & volunteer opportunities, and to build on the volunteer base they've developed here in the Des Moines area. We're also planning to develop a more active online presence with regular updates on Facebook, Twitter, and Foursquare so look for us there! Additionally, Kelly and I have committed to regular blog posts on the 7th and 21st of each month (as I type this on April 24th) under the direction of former organizer Lance Massey as Blogger-in-Chief. :)

We've got a volunteer opportunity Thursday April 25th from 6:30-8:30 at St. Timothy's and a meeting coming up on Friday May 3rd. We'll keep you up to date and we hope to see you soon!