Even though you've seen this before, we don't want you to stop being interested in reading about our trips to the Oregon Food Bank. We can't help it if it's the easiest, most fun and energetic volunteering in town. We just can't stop going. And, to further fuel our excitement, July 20 was our second time with oats! (See previous post for more details on the awesomeness of oats.) Therapeutically scooping, a pound at a time, the volunteers scooped a total of 7,000 pounds of oats Tuesday night. Figuring 1.3 pounds of food for an average meal, that means that each of the 65 volunteers made 82 meals possible. Really, the OFB network deserves our constant admiration. They run such a tight ship and have such an extensive reach. We happily agree to keep coming, oats or no oats!
So, the Portland International BeerFest is organized (so we're told) by a man who is devoted to animals. Therefore, he invited several local animal groups (Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon, Animal Aid and Indigo Rescue) to set up shop at the beer tasting event down in the north park blocks July 16-18. That's where we came in. Asking people for money to buy raffle tickets while they're drinking a lot of beer is actually quite easy, and we found that they're quite ready to give! Indigo Rescue 
brought nine, 12-week old puppies for show and tell, and that didn't hurt either. For $3, people could spend five minutes in the pen with the puppies. It was a huge hit! How can you stay away from nine adorable puppies? Not to mention that one litter of NINE puppies is absolutely the best argument for spaying and neutering you can find. Another great money maker was a shuffle board table where drinking patrons could pay $3 to try to get thirty points sliding a swill-filled pint glass down the table. These are truly brilliant ideas. Even with all the fancy auctions, galas and other alcohol-enhanced fundraisers that are held every year, I still say the drinking/fund-raising opportunities are underutilized. Let's work on that in the future, shall we?
ance aside from a lot of competing activities on a beautiful summer day. We were there to help the few people who did show, and then we were able to offer help cleaning up and taking down. Humans Solutions and all their clients will keep pressing forward - on to the next big idea, fighting the good fight to end the cycle of poverty in logical, sustainable ways. Best wishes!!
