for a couple of years i volunteered at project open hand (poh) once a week. poh is a non-profit that was founded in 1985 and delivers food to seniors and people battling critical illness. they also provide daily meals at their locations in san francisco and oakland. this is not your average food kitchen! poh collaborated with UC san francisco school of medicine in a study published in january of 2017. the study demonstrated how nutritious food has healing powers that are crucial for helping the critically ill.

volunteering at poh proved to be a wonderful break from my hectic schedule, where i could play just a teensy role in getting food prepped to be provided to people in need. while helping out in the kitchen, i primarily peeled and chopped vegetables. in the grocery center i sorted and packed food in the warehouse - both activities were super simple but extremely fulfilling!

in addition to the awesome kitchen, grocery center and meal deliveries, poh also has a radical indoor greenhouse at the polk street location. it's unlike any greenhouse i've seen before - reminding me of a science fiction movie! it has veggies planted in these wheels, which rotate at a slow pace around the light in the center.

the greenhouse garden grows veggies like red sails leaf lettuce, freckles romaine lettuce, basil and micro greens. it can produce a lot of leafy greens at once! for example, if they dedicate all space on the wheel for basil and then use all the leaves produced for a sauce, it can be used in up to 1,400 meals! to see the awesome video that explains how it works, click here.

to help the cause, please click here to donate and here for more information on how to start volunteering! also, if you're in the mood for a tear jerker, here's a heartwarming video that gives a more complete idea of how project open hand changes lives - https://www.openhand.org/about-us

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empact northwest is a non-profit organization providing immediate disaster response, rescue training and medical education for underserved communities. one of skinSALVATION's AMAZING clients volunteers with this organization and was in haiti last year helping rebuild the community!

founded in 2010 in response to the haiti earthquake, empact is dedicated to providing technical rescue service, direct medical care and education around the world to those who need it most, regardless of national or political affiliation.