Angelina Estupinan

I volunteered with Feeding South Florida for their Thanksgiving Meal Distribution, which was a drive through event. When I arrived, I helped organize the food into different sections and set up my assigned tent. Each table had 2 to 4 food items, and mine was in charge of black beans and rice. My team and I unpacked about five boxes of each item and laid everything out neatly on the table. During the distribution, we handed out bags of rice and beans to the families driving through, while others distributed what was on their table. By the time the event ended we handed out about 20 + bags of food, which I believe to be a good turnout. Overall, it was a really meaningful experience, and it felt good to give back and help make someone’s Thanksgiving a little happier.

I volunteered with FIU Sustainability at the MMC Nature Preserve for the second time, this time we helped water plants and remove invasive trees. We spent the first 30 minutes walking the trail and watering all the newly planted flowers and plants, which there were more than 50 new flowers planted. After that with the time remaining, we used pullerbears to rip out some invasive plants that should not be in the forest. By the end we ended up taking out about 30 or more invasive plants in the forest. I had never really gone into the trail or forest at MMC before, so it was a really rewarding experience. I got to learn about a part of campus I had never explored, and it made me appreciate the work that goes into keeping the preserve healthy.

I volunteered with FIU Sustainability at the MMC Nature Preserve, where we helped with gardening and maintaining the area. Some students were pulling weeds around the banana trees, while others helped move mulch from the pile to the garden area. I worked on moving mulch, which was important to keep the grass cutters from getting too close to the trees and damaging them. By the end of time I ended up filling up about more than 10 wheelbarrows of mulch to surround the different plants. It was a fun and rewarding experience, and I enjoyed learning more about the garden at MMC since I did not know much about it before.