Pennsylvania Distribution Center (PDC)

GAiN has two locations in the U.S - an office in Dallas, TX and a Distribution Center in Mt. Joy, Pennsylvania. I will be working out of the Dallas office, but got a chance last week to visit the distribution center. All of the aid is processed through the distribution center and is then shipped over seas to different regions and partners. Twice a year the distribution center has a week long packing event where volunteers come and pack up the aid that is to be distributed throughout the next few months.

Last week was one of these weeks and I went to help out for a day to see more of what GAiN does out of their distribution center. They have many types of aid that they pack up in the PDC: blankets, seed packs, food (rice and beans), medical supplies, shoes, clothing, and even teddy bears and gospel bracelets that get distributed with the aid. 

I had the opportunity to work in the food area and help package and pack beans to be shipped out to different regions. They have a whole process assembly line in order to get the beans packed! First, you place a plastic bag underneath the funnel and then measure one scoop of beans and pour it into the funnel. 

The bag then gets placed on the sealer. But before the bag is sealed, it needs to be completely free of air  so you are left with a bag full of beans and nothing else! After all the air is smoothed out, the bag gets sealed with heat. 

This is my friend Makayla helping me seal the bags. She came up from NC with her church to help out at the PCD for the week. This was her first missions trip and she was so excited to be able to help pack food for people.

Seeing the tally board and realizing how one bag provides 6 meals really made an impact on me. It made me realize just how much we have in the U.S. Why do we in America think that we need so many options and so much food?

The bean packing session that I was a part of sealed and packed 246 boxes, which adds up to 35,424 meals.  

Throughout my time at the PDC, I realized just how much my heart is bent towards helping those without basic needs. My heart is for those nations who don't have those basic needs met in the form of food, clothes, water, etc. Being at the PDC really grew my heart more for what is to come next year!

embarking in an adventure

For the next year I will be going on an adventure with Global Aid Network. GAiN is the humanitarian aid arm of Cru, which is the christian organization I have been involved with during my college years.

I will be working on further developing health curriculum for their international health programs. For all the aid they give out, GAiN pairs it with an educational component, which provides an opportunity to build relationships in the community and to tangibly share the love of Christ with families in the villages. It also helps to empower the people in the villages to take ownership of what we give them. 

I am so excited to start working with GAiN to develop curriculum for their Water, Sanitation, & Hygiene (WaSH) program. I made this blog in order to document my journey, the adventures I have, and write down some stories of my year. The first adventure is the task of support raising this summer. It has been neat to watch God provide and I am excited to see what he does the rest of the summer and year! Come along with me for the ride!