In January, V’m was able to scuttle his little legs over to Rockville to check out Comfort Cases. Comfort Cases has an amazing story and mission, which was told to our VM32 cohort directly from Director Rob Scheer. After hearing the story, V’m didn’t just see the packing of cases, they saw it as creating things that will support a person during a very trying time. V’m was amazed to learn how a case filled with a few things could make the difference by showing a person that their situation does not rob them of the care they deserve or dignity that they have.
We started the day listening to Mr.Scheer’s story of how Comfort Cases came to be, learning some of the hard facts and stats about what it is to be a foster child in modern day USA. We watched an orientation video detailing how each piece of a Comfort Case is chosen with such intentionality to ensure that it meets a need and deep desire of a person who is suddenly in a situation where they have to leave everything behind except for what they can carry. Our hearts ablaze, we started working, reminded of the people, who we hoped would feel the care we put into our work and carry that with them as well.
V’m was having trouble organizing clothes because they didn’t want to clip the tags by accident with their claws and preferred that honor be given to the Comfort Case recipient after learning about the importance of that moment. V’m also hasn’t been working out enough to lift and organize books so, they left that to VM32 members who actually use their gym membership. Then, even though V’m has a full time job with Volunteer Maryland, they were almost sorted with the Stuffies (so honored, but V’m is an older Stuffie with some mileage and Comfort Case recipients deserve only the newest and best Stuffies to be a forever friend)! So, V’m decided to help VM32 member Emmanuel (pictured above) keep account of specific cases that were ready to be shipped for a Comfort Case Packing Party.
Working alongside each other, VM32 enjoyed the time spent in service together. While we worked we had heart-to-heart conversations about the realities of foster care, shared our excitement about the impact these cases would make, made jokes about V’m’s shell-phone service, & helped support each other in various volunteer tasks to prove the motto that many hands (or claws) makes light work.
As a volunteer, the office was so friendly, V’m felt so at home seeing so many other stuffies and learned that they were being prepared to be mascots of hope to their own young people. The volunteer staff, including Volunteer Coordinator Markia Chambers, made V’m feel so welcome and they all became fast friends who still call V’m on their Shell-phone to catch up and hear about the exciting Comfort Cases events and reminisce about how VM32 was such a delightful volunteer group and how Comfort Cases was such a memorable, meaningful Service Project!
Check out our Instagram @volunteer_maryland this week to see the pictures from our awesome day at Comfort Cases. Then, stay tuned to our Instagram for our AmeriCorps Week Service Project Stats!
Volunteer Maryland 