Deborah’s Place

Location: Dolores’ Safe Haven

Date: Thursday, June 27, 2013; 6:00-8:00 pm

I had never been to this location and besides knowing that it was a cooking project, had no additional information regarding this program.  So when the regular volunteer leader sent me an email asking if I could lead since they were unavailable, I was a little lost for words.  I said yes anyways, with a caveat that although I felt capable of leading, I would be improvising as we went along.  Eventually, Amy from Chicago Cares wrote saying that since I did not have any experience at this place, she would be in attendance and also lead the project.  This suited me and I showed up at the location at 6 pm, ready to do whatever was required.  When I saw that besides me and Amy there was only one other volunteer, I knew that we were in for busy evening.

The other volunteer’s name was Dani - a visitor from Germany - in Chicago for the summer and volunteering while here.  Now, these are the people who impress me a lot and her personality made it apparent that she was going to be a terrific teammate.  Before we began Amy told us about the place, which was a safe haven for homeless women by giving them shelter.  However, while they can sleep there, in order to be eligible for other perks the women had to participate in programs to cure themselves of drugs and alcoholism.  While kitchen was a big room with a huge island in the middle, outside was a nice lounge where several women were sitting and watching TV or chatting. 

Instant Stuffing!

The menu this evening was Meatloaf, beans and veggies and stuffing.  While the meatloaf had already been prepared and was warming in the oven, Amy said that she would make beans while Dani chopped the veggies.  This left me with the stuffing, another ingredient that I had never used before.  I read the instructions on the package and it seemed straightforward.  All I needed were pans and some butter.  While I was able to find two pans, the only butter in the refrigerator was ‘garlic butter’.  Speaking of things inside the refrigerator, there were several items which looked well past their prime and many that actually were.  The overall state of the refrigerator and its hygiene wasn't very good and I was not very keen to use any ingredients from in there.  I was disappointed that the site rep or someone who was responsible for the kitchen would be so negligent. 

I poured the stuffing in the two pans and mixed with butter.  Being instant stuffing it was ready in no time, allowing me a chance to help Amy with the beans…and boy, did they need some enhancements.  Amy had just left the beans to boil, without adding any seasoning and so it was no surprise to find them slightly mushy and totally bland.  I knew that a major salvage operation would be required, and so went in search of some pepper and other spices.  I found some seasoned salt, some sort of seasoning and red chilli flakes, though I had to be careful with that.  Even with all of that addition, there was no improvement.  I told the ladies that we were switching it up and were now going to make a bean casserole…though I had no idea what was supposed to be in it.  I drained the beans and mixed with some sour cream.  Dani suggested that I also add some onion dip flakes to impart some flavor.  We then spread it out in a casserole, added some cheese on top, sprinkled bread crumbs and put it in the oven.  I mentioned to Amy that while I may not cook regularly, I was still a very good improviser. 

Dani, Amy and I made a great team

By now all the dishes were done and we were ready to serve, though we had to go around the kitchen and find plates.  I cut the meatloaf into 1 inch slices and started plating, with Dani and Amy at the counter serving the stuffing and the casserole.  The ladies would come to the counter and we would serve them as per their direction.  Some wanted only casserole while others wanted only stuffing.  A few of the ladies were slightly impatient and demanding, but our job was to get them what they wanted.  It also happened to be one resident’s birthday and so we had a cake for dessert. One lady with walker looked like the leader of the group and was extremely excited about the resident’s birthday.  She kept telling us about it and how we should do it and at what time during the evening.  She needed help carrying the plate to her seat and as I helped her, I noticed how she liked everything to be precise, including the placement of her utensils and water!

It was time to cut the cake and we put candles on something which had brilliant purple icing.  Everyone assembled by the kitchen counter and as the lady cut the cake, the rest of us sang ‘Happy Birthday’.  Then we started cutting the cake – which was purple from inside as well – and served with ice cream.  Many ladies wanted just ice cream, including the lady with the walker, who took three scoops.  Dani had started washing the dishes and I joined her, taking over the rinsing and sanitizing stations.  While the kitchen had a dishwasher, it was broken.  We laid out towels and aprons on the center island and left all the plates and other cooking utensils to dry.  Washing was taking a long time and it gave me an opportunity to chat with Dani about other projects and her experiences in Chicago.  Amy told us about a project ‘New Life For Old Bags’, where they make mattresses from plastic bags and even showed us how to make a yarn. 

Wilson's proverb - absolute truth

Even thought it was a lot of hard work, I thoroughly enjoyed chatting with Dani and Amy and we were all smiling as we took a group picture at the end.  I was extremely tired and that night exchanged some texts with Wilson where I complained about some of the things at the project site, including the disinterested attitude of the site rep, as well as some of the resident ladies who had been a little short with us.  Wilson reminded me that these ladies have had a tough life that we could not even comprehend.  I said I understood, but my frustration was with the site rep and the conditions in the kitchen. I was sure that the refrigerator was a health hazard.  Next day, after a night’s sleep, I saw his point. He then sent me a picture of a Native American saying from the ‘American Indian Center’.  Yes, the ‘Deborah’s Place’ project could be better.  But you always play with the cards that you have been dealt and it was our responsibility towards those ladies to play a good hand.