UCSB - A Grand Finale!

Dear FG,

Last Sunday, two tiny parks and a university parking lot in beautiful downtown Isla Vista, CA were the site of a major music festival called ChillaVista. This festival was designed to show students and locals different ways to "live consciously" in the world around us. Many organizations and bands came together to promote responsible, healthy lifestyles including one we are all very familiar with, FeelGood.

When the ChillaVista organizers and the officers of FeelGood SB found out about each other, they immediately agreed that the only natural thing to do was to collaborate. Within a week, the spring 2007 ChillaVista featured the local FG chapter as the sole food service in the park. The deli provided a fun atmosphere to celebrate the end of our first semester in Santa Barbara and a perfect opportunity to raise awareness for global hunger. Our biggest sellers were the Gaucho (UCSB's mascot) which featured Pepper Jack cheese, bell peppers, and a shot of guacamole and the Greek which had tomatoes and olives. Both sold out of ingredients and we had to make three store-runs!

FeelGood SB would like to take this opportunity to thank the members of the IV Food Co-op and the brothers of UCSB's AEPi chapter for the donations and volunteering during the festival. With their help and the hard work of our members, we raised $350 by the end of the day, our highest income ever!

Thanks to everyone for a great semester and here's to an even better Fall!

Herschel
FeelGood SB, Chair

Thank You's from FG UIUC

Our group (minus a few) celebrated our successful first semester tonight! We just want to thank

- other FG chapters for all the inspiration and support;
- Kristin who seemed to have the answer to everything;
- Courier Cafe/Silvercreek for our regular supply of various hearty bread;
- Za's and Strawberry Fields for their in-kind donations;
- Clybourne's for being open to us
- and anyone who helped out to get our deli up and running initially (epecially Ryan S., Carleen, Johan, Nurul and Cindy)

Looking forward to more feelingood next semester! :)

Not Feeling So Good

These past two days I’ve found myself incredibly distracted and emotionally preoccupied by the sadness and vast loss of innocence that resulted from Monday’s VT Massacre. As college students, I’m sure this tragedy hits a little to close to home and I just want to express that my thoughts and prayers are with you all.

My prayers go out to the families of the victims who will need all the love and support this universe holds in order to slowly heal.

Keep spreading the love and hope of a more complete humanity; the world needs it.

Taking Back a Childhood Favorite

There was a delicious article in the NY Times today about grilled cheese sandwiches. I thought some of you students might be interested; especially those of you who love exploring recipes. Read the article here

Hope you are all having a wonderful day!

2 Grilled Cheese/soda combos = 1 $10 Bed-net for 2 people

Hey UVM Kiddees and Kiddos!

A couple more things!

First, if you haven't done so, check out the article written about FeelGood in "The View" It's a really nice piece and hopefully lots will read it and get the FeelGood message!
http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/theview/article.php?id=2296

Motivation this week...what do you know about Malaria?

Well, according to Milleniumpromise.org a child dies from Malaria every 30 seconds. 1-3 million people (mostly children) die each year from Malaria.

"Malaria and poverty are intimately connected. Malaria is most intractable for the poorest countries in the world. It affects the health and economic growth of nations and individuals alike and is costing Africa about $12 billion a year in economic output.

The simple presence of malaria in a community or country also hampers individual and national prosperity due to its influence on social and economic decisions. The risk of contracting malaria in endemic areas can deter investment and affect individual and household decision making in many ways that have a negative impact on economic
productivity and growth.

Some examples of negative impact include:

• Preference by individual farmers/households to plant subsistence crops rather than more labor-intensive cash crops because of malaria's impact on labor during harvest season.
• Undeveloped markets due to traders' unwillingness to travel to and invest in malaria endemic areas.
• Undeveloped tourist industry due to reluctance of travelers to visit malaria-endemic areas."

THP Malawi launched a HUGE anti-malaria bed-net program in January 2004. In the October 2006 update to the global board, THP Malawi reported "THP-Malawi provides loans to buy bed nets, which are then sold for a small profit (this profit is invested back into getting more bed-nets). So far, several hundred bed-nets have been sold to the partners and this has dramatically reduced the incidences of malaria in several villages."

It is the simplest thing such as a bed-net that saves 2 lives, yet there are people out there who don’t have access to them This is not ok! If you want to read more about Malawi's malaria initiative, here is the link.

http://thp.org/malawi/2004/update0104/index.htm

Or if you want to learn more about Malaria and poverty click here:
http://www.millenniumpromise.org/site/PageServer?pagename=malaria_main

So who knew the cost of a couple grilled cheeses could buy a bed-net and save lives...literally!

See you tonight everyone!! 7:00 pm- be there or be square.

-Leah

Eat Well, FeelGood

By Thomas Weaver
Article published March 22, 2007 in UVM's The View


The corridor through the ground floor of Billings has long led to hotbeds of student creative energy. From the Cynic offices, past WRUV’s studio where a bass beat inevitably thumps behind the sticker-plastered door, and on to the busy network of Student Government Association offices. Tuesday and Friday afternoons, that scene expands to include an unusual blend of the culinary arts and philanthropy when the student volunteers of the Feel Good organization plug in their trusty Foremans to grill cheese sandwiches.

It would be tough to find a more potent combination of thrift and social conscience, gustatory pleasure and sound nutrition than the four-dollar grilled cheese served up by the student volunteers of UVM’s Feel Good. Working with bread from Klinger’s Bakery and 25 pounds of Shelburne Farms' cheddar donated every week, the group gives all of its profit — $10,000 last semester alone — to The Hunger Project and Millennium Promise.

Apologies to the big guys at Sodexho and the little guys out in the trucks on University Place, but Feel Good is one of the best campus lunch deals going. This isn’t your white bread and Velveeta grilled cheese, but a sandwich with gourmet aspirations from the top-notch bread and cheese to a bevy of embellishments — your choice of garlic, salsa, onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers and spinach. May we suggest the “Cheesus Loves Me”?

Feel Good is a national effort with roots at the University of Texas, where it was started by a circle of cross-country runners and their friends. In 2005, they began spreading the “ending world hunger one grilled cheese at a time” concept to other universities, and there are now 11 chapters nationwide — Columbia to Illinois to Colorado to UC-Santa Barbara. When UVM Feel Good VP Leah Grossman is asked why this particular method for fighting hunger, her eyes widen a little at the slow-pitch softball question. “Everyone loves grilled cheese,” she says. “It’s simple, delicious, students love it.”

In its philanthropy and educational efforts, Feel Good emphasizes a self-reliant, grassroots model of development — with high priority placed on the empowerment of women. That philosophy is explained at the organization's website: “We believe that conventional, top-down planning is not the answer; it is part of the problem. Top-down, service-delivery approaches are not only too inefficient and inflexible to make a dent in world hunger, they actually undermine the most important resource — the creativity and self-reliance of hungry people themselves.”

Illustrating the concept, UVM student Grossman suggests a variation on the familiar “Give a man a fish or teach a man to fish” wisdom. “These people know how to fish, but the lake is dry or it is surrounded with barbed wire,” she says. “One of the most important things we can do is help remove obstacles that keep people from being able to help themselves.”

With an old-school marketing approach heavily invested in sidewalk chalk, UVM Feel Good has built itself into the leading fundraising chapter in the organization. The Vermont students typically sell in the neighborhood of 100 sandwiches each day during the two afternoons a week they’re open for business in the Billings basement, Feel Good President Taryn Ross says. They also set up at special events, such as SpringFest or February’s Transgender Identity Conference on campus.

Next fall, Feel Good members will move into the Davis Center, where they’ll set up their sandwich-making assembly line in 81 square-feet of deli/kiosk space. It will be a tight squeeze, but the students are used to doing great works with humble things. Archimedes can keep his lever; give these UVM students a Foreman and they can move the world.

To read the article online go to: http://www.uvm.edu/~uvmpr/theview/article.php?id=2296

UVM Officer Candidates for 2007-2008

LEAH GROSSMAN- PRESIDENT
Hi all. Well, this is my fourth semester in Feelgood and my second as VP. I am thrilled to be leading a group of the MOST AMAZING PEOPLE into another year of tremendous growth. I would like to see Feelgood take on a more professional quality as well as become more efficient in communicating our message of partnership. I believe that being a part of this organization has the power to change you both as a typical college student and as a member of humanity. I have enjoyed seeing members take on ownership of our operation and invest so much of themselves. My favorite thing about being a leader for feelgood is watching a member who comes in kind of clueless, evolve into this fierce individual who, while handing out a Wanu, is grillin up the sickest grilled cheese ever, helping the girl next to her with portion control, and simultaneously is explaining what an epicenter is to the interested student on the other side of the counter. Now THAT'S a feelgooder!

LIZ BATSFORD- VICE PRESIDENT
I've been involved with Feelgood since last semester. It's become a pretty big part of what I do at UVM and I want to get further involved. I get really excited about The Hunger Project and all of the work it does. As Vice President I would like to put an extra effort into making sure that we continue to attract new members and to make them feel welcome. I really want to help to bring Feelgood to the next level.
My favorite sandwich is the U.P.S. with mushrooms and onions on sourdough.

MELISSA STIMSON- VICE PRESIDENT
My name is Melissa Stimson. I am a sophomore and I have been involved with FeelGood for the 2006-2007 school year. I would love to fill the position of vice president because I feel that it is one of many ways for me to express my love and commitment for this organization. I feel that my experience, passion, dedication, responsibility and friendliness are qualities that will help us all work towards our goals of raising awareness of The Hunger Project and creating partnerships which work towards ending world hunger. After all if we work hard enough we can accomplish anything!

MARGARET PETRARCA-TREASURER
My name is Margaret Petrarca and I am running for the position of treasurer. I joined FeelGood last semester and attended the Gala in NYC for the Africa Prize. It was a very enlightening experience and ever since I have been trying to find ways
to give my time and passion to FeelGood. I have been on the bread commity and recently switched to the produce commity and i would like to continue to give by becoming treasurer. I feel that FeelGood has grown so much and i would like
to see it continue to gain success and to be a part of that success.
If I were to be a FeelGood grilled cheese I would be the Shelburne Shandwich without mushrooms, with pesto and roasted garlic parm bread!

LAURA CUI- FUNDRAISING CHAIR (FALL 2007)
"It all started at Billings Bedlam 2006 when I ate my first FeelGood sandwich. That combination of pesto, pasta sauce and cheese tickled my senses so! FeelGood sandwiches are totally delicious. But fo realz. This year, I have become much
more involved with FeelGood, and I would love to help out even more. I am running for Fundraising Chair for Fall 2007. I have worked with fundraising in the past with other groups and I can use the experience I gained to help FeelGood. Although we already donate a large amount to THP, I think we can do even better. In raising more money and reaching more people, we will be able to form stronger bonds with our
THP partners. Peace, equality, and gourmet grilled cheese for all!"

ALYSSA CATALANO- FUNDRAISING CHAIR (SPRING 2008)
"Hey I'm Alyssa and I got involved with UVM FeelGood this fall, but discovered the grilled cheese last spring. I loved getting a King Klinger, it would always
make my Friday afternoon. Sophomore year I decided to get involved and take an
active part with FeelGood, and have been hooked. I am running for the Fund raising chair with Laura. I am going to New Zealand in the Fall and Laura is going abroad in the Spring so we decided to team up and raise some money for us! I have been in contact with some of the Church Street Marketplace vendors and am hoping that we will be able to develop a relationship with several of the stores so that we can have a fun different raffle every month.
If you want the piece with our favorite sandwich, mine is a self-created one. I take 2pieces of Maple Oat Walnut bread (or Pumpernickel when we have it!), add cheese, caramelized onions, salsa, and pesto."

JAMIE SEIFFER- ADVERTISING CHAIR

This is Jamie's second year involved in feelgood. He currently heads advertising and is super good at it! He wants every single person on campus to know what feelgood is, and is extremely passionate and excited about making that happen.

UIUC FeelGood Finds a Local Bread Sponsor!!!

Hey Kristin!

If you would like to recognize UIUC sponsors in FGW website, Courier Cafe/Silvercreek Restaurant is sponsoring our bread regularly. Pretty sweet! And they are a local company:)

:) Kristine, UIUC FeelGood President

Bottoms-up!

So as members of FeelGood, we constantly throw around the
phrase "WE ARE ENDING HUNGER!" What a broad statement to make don't
you think? Chronic hunger consists of many root causes, how can we
possibly get to the foundation of all of them? Well, we start at the
bottom! The same goes for when people ask you what The Hunger Project
does exactly. Start at the beginning. The process of creating
sustainability begins at the cognitive level of each and every
individual. People must believe in their abilities to take action on
their own behalf. This is where The Hunger Project initiates the
journey; in the human mind and spirit. Below is THP's explanation of
their bottom-up approach.


Mobilizing for Self-reliance
Top-down approaches treat people as passive beneficiaries, dependent
on government handouts. After decades, people internalize this belief.
As promises of assistance fail to materialize, people are left in deep
resignation.

The first step in The Hunger Project's strategies worldwide is to
awaken people to a new possibility: the possibility of not waiting to
be rescued, but taking action now to meet basic needs. This is
achieved through the Vision, Commitment and Action Workshop (VCAW).

Part of the "homework" of the VCAW is to launch a three-month project
based entirely on local resources. In achieving this first success,
people?s initial inspiration develops into self-confidence.

There are other vital steps in mobilization. We train local volunteer
leaders known as "animators" who become the spark plugs for local
action. As people take more substantial action, we provide training in
literacy and local laws. We organize people into self-help groups to
gain a stronger voice. Success builds on success.

The results of mobilization include the hundreds of village-level
projects launched through our epicenter strategy in Africa, as
residents of outlying villages build local classrooms, local workshops
for income-generating activities, and local food storage for food
security.

In Mexico, villages have taken on replanting the forests. In Bolivia,
villages build their own irrigation systems. In Bangladesh, clusters
of villages launch mass-action campaigns, some of which have ensured
that the villages are 100 percent free from dowry-based marriages, and
100 percent literate, and that 100 percent of the households have
latrines. In fact, a popular T-shirt in Hunger Project villages in
Bangladesh reads: "A person whose spirit is unleashed will never go
hungry."

With few exceptions, conventional top-down plans completely ignore the
power of mobilizing people for self-reliant action."
-THP.org

Hope you've learned a little bit more and feel "animated" to continue on!
See you tomorrow guys,
-Leah

Grilled Cheese...Cake!

Hello FeelGooders,
I turned 24 this month. Check out my birthday cake! Looks like a grilled cheese, but it's actually a cake! Golly I have some wonderful friends. They sure know the way to my heart...a FeelGood Grilled Cheese! I'd like to give a holler to Frank John Synnestvedt, the culinary genius who orchestrated this master piece. Check out his website:

Hope everyone is doing well!

Peace,

Kristin

Desmond's Shout Out to FeelGood

Well, I have to write you to let you know what happened this morning. We had our first talk from Desmond Tutu in our Global Studies class which we all have every morning. Yes Desmond is on the ship, but our contact has been more limited than I would have hoped. The only chances we have gotten so far to converse with him are at meal times…and then you have to be in the right place at the right time with a seat open (I have sat with him before). BUT TODAY WAS AMAZING! He spoke to us all, and no more than 10 minutes into his speech, something amazing happened. Well one more story first… he had a photo session a week or so ago, where I gave him a FeelGood jacket and material, but only had about 10 seconds to describe FeelGood and how it was started. I haven’t seen him wear the jacket yet, but back to the story. So ten minutes into his speech, Desmond Tutu gives a PERSONAL shout out to me (referred to me as one of the students) and to FeelGood! He spent like a whole minute describing how amazing students are since they do things like this and how amazing FeelGood itself is at ending poverty! Point is, I feel like I’m high. Desmond Tutu loves FeelGood! So I now am in the process of trying to get my hands on one of the professional videos taken of his speech so we can get it for FeelGood. I gotta go, but I really think this is a big step for FeelGood… Peace out!



-Jason

Former UT FeelGood President and Desmond Tutu!

Hello FGers,

This is Kristin Walter from FG World just signing in to share some FG news with you. Well, UT FeelGood's president of 2 years, Jason Walter, left this semester to do Semester At Sea. While he is no longer UT's FG president, he is still a hardcore FG advocate and is sort of evangalizing (for lack of a better word) for FG on the boat. I am happy to report that his FG sharing is paying off...he says he has already recruited a handful of new schools! But he is not only sharing FG with students, he has the unique opportunity of being on a boat with one of my favorite Nobel Peace Prize Laureates, Desmond Tutu. Read what he has to say about his experience thus far:

You will be happy to know that I sat down with Bishop Desmond Tutu this morning for about 10 minutes during breakfast before class. It was fantastic. He is the wisest, most endearing man of all time. He wanted to be a doctor when he was my age, but I am glad he chose the path he did. He was a highschool teacher for some time but moved on once the school he was teaching at began to be unjust (Something tells me what I just wrote didn't make sense, but the point is he constantly stands up for what he believes in and never waivers, not for money, not for job security, not for anything). I was the last in line the other night for an autographing by Desmond, but they ended up cutting it short so I didn't actually get to follow through with it. I am first in line though to get pictures taken with him Thursday night (I have the FeelGood jacket and material already ready to go).

Keep it up Jason and please send us a picture of you and Desmond when you get one.

Everyone else out there, have no fear, Sara Janne Aarsland has taken hold of the reigns as the new UT FeelGood President without missing a beat.

Have a happy Valentine's Day!

Peace,

Kristin

MDG Video

Hello Again,

This week I'd thought I'd send a little audio-visual your way. This
video I found on "youtube" was made at Depaul University in Chicago
and outlines the Millenium Development Goals. I know that most of you
are pretty familiar with the goals but I have found that the more
input we recieve in different forms, the better we can put the
information into our own words and better articulate it to others.
Just click below.

MDG Video

Realize that you are part of this...you are an ACTIVE part history in
the making.

Have a great day and I look forward to see you all this week!
-Leah

$1000 for THP in 1 week!

Hey there feelgooders,

Thanks to all your hardwork we recieved $1000 in donations last week!
Keep spreading the feelgood word. We may not be the most well-known
organization on campus, but we ARE the one of the most influential,
and with some persistance we WILL be known by everyone at UVM.

On that note, a feelgood campus mailer will be going out to every
mailbox in the dorms in the upcoming week. Keep a look out and take
the opportunity to inform people you see with the flyers!

Also, feelgood apparrel is flying off the shelves! Come get your
t-shirts, track jackets, and hats (yes, awesome FG winter hats) before
they're gone!

Tonight is just a prep night, but no less important. Please meet @
THE FEELGOOD COUNTER, MONDAY FEBRUARY 12TH, 7:00 PM

If you can't make it to prep tomorrow, please email me with the times
you want to work this week. I cannot stress enough the much needed
help on Tuesdays. Business is starting to pick up and the counter
can't run without you guys. For those of you who are new to the
listerv this week feel free to jump right in, everyone is always
welcome.

Cheers!

Leah, VP or UVM FeelGood

February 5th 2007

GOOD MORNING feelgood boys and girls,

Hope you all had a fantastic weekend and a lovely superbowl Sunday!(asa born and raised "chicago-an," I am now in recovery)

Football aside, this week is an "official feelgood meeting week." At the last "official meeting" we all came up with a few goals to liveup to this semester:
1) educate others about The Hunger Project
2) Plan a possible event with Middlebury Feelgood
3)Reach out to more faculty
4)Find more donations in order to limit budget money spent on produce
5) Raise $15,000 this semester!!!!!

So this week's meeting is TODAY (MONDAY), FEBRUARY 5TH @ 7:00 PM IN THE MLK LOUNGE (NEAR CC THEATER) Also, the new apparel is at the counter! We've got some sweet AmericanApparel blue and grey t-shirts as well as cranberry and asphalt trackjackets. Come check it out and hear about our great deal!

As usual we will be doing prep after the meeting as well as sign-upsfor the week. Shoot me an email if you'd like to sign up for a slot but can't make it to the meeting. This week we are trying time-slotsaccording to "class periods" If it doesn't really fly we will go back to the hour slots. You can still sign up for as many slots as you would like, this is an experiment to see if we can transition the counterpositions more smoothly.

ALSO...Feelgood will be at the 1st annual Winter Club Fair this weekon Wednesday the 7th from 11-3. Sign-ups to work our table will be atthe meeting.

Now to educate ourselves....So I found this website called thehungersite.com. I clicked thisbutton that said "help feed the hungry...click here, its free" I clicked and a message came up that said "Thank you! Your click helps feed the hungry with the value of 1.1cups of staple food. Please click every day and thank our sponsorsbelow."

Hmmmm....I hope you can all see what is very wrong with this idea. Read this exerpt from The Hunger Project's February newsletter and see if you can find the flaws with the kind of "hunger" image above....

"Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Teach him how to fishand he will eat for a lifetime."~ Chinese Proverb.

This proverb leaps to mind whenever we think of efforts to end hunger. Yet, it is surprisingly and dangerously misleading. Most of the hungriest parts of the world produce more than enoughfood. India - the country with the largest number of hungry people - has tens of millions of tons of surplus food in storage. If hungry people don't lack our food, then surely they lack our knowledge. Don't they need our technology and expertise to solve their problems of hunger and poverty?

No. People are not hungry because they are ignorant. Some of theworld's greatest knowledge of sustainable fishing, herding and farmingresides in the world's hungry villages. We in the West could franklyuse a few lessons ourselves in sustainable food production. The issues are more fundamental. The fish are there. The people knowhow to fish. Yet, there is barbed wire around the pond - literally andfiguratively."

As members of FeelGood, these are the ideas we need to help our peersto adopt. Our partners around the world may be denied thier voice, but we have the opportunity to use ours to its full potential. If you would like an example of how The Hunger Project addresses the underlying social conditions in order to cut that "barbed wire," read on...

"Increasing people's productivity and income requires accurate information. The majority of hungry people live in rural communities that are at a serious economic disadvantage because they are without news of markets, prices, climatic conditions and competition. The Hunger Project develops strategies to overcome this isolation by ensuring that people in remote areas have timely access to informationto make knowledgeable decisions and improve their livelihoods. In Bolivia, our partner organization's radio broadcast provides information in Quechua, the local, indigenous language. EverySaturday, the radio station announces prices of agricultural products so that farmers have the timely information they need to protect themselves against abuses by purchasers who buy products at lower than fair prices in communities far from the capital. The station denounces unfair activity and encourages farmers to organize into federations.

Another example is from India, where the government has employment and drought relief schemes to provide income for the poor. People who are the poorest of the poor often are not covered by the schemes and also do not know that these programs exist. Elected local women leaders trained by The Hunger Project ensure that in their area every family living in poverty is covered by the schemes and is able to take advantage of them."

Congratualtions if you've made it to this blog. An even bigger congratulations if you've learned something!

See you tomorrow,

-Leah - VP of UVM FeelGood

Janurary 28th, 2007

So I was listening to this song by Dar Williams called "Echoes" that kind of reminded me of feelgood and our work. It goes like this...

Every time you love just a little
Take one step closer, solving a riddle
It echoes all over the world

Every time you opt in to kindness
Make one connection, used to divide us
It echoes all over the world

Every time you choose one more morning
Goodness or meanness, life has one warning
It echoes all over the world

When a leader gets the hungry fed food
When you just make love inside your bedroom
It echoes all over the world

So every time tell someone about empowering our partners, or make a cheesus loves me, or scream "GOURMET GRILLED CHEESE !!" at someone, or even slice an onion at prep...even really small actions like those...will in turn affect one action, that affects another action that affects another and so on. It will echo all over the world.

See ya'll tomorrow!

Leah - VP of UVM FeelGood

UVM - Week 2

Dear UVM FeelGood,

As promised, I will continue to deliver your weekly motivation to continue our important commitment. This expert is from wateraid.org...

"Diarrhea claims the lives of 5000 children a day. These children aredying because they do not have access to adequate sanitation or safewater. Their deaths, from common diseases, are preventable.Where there is nowhere safe and clean to go to the toilet, people areexposed to disease, lack of privacy, and indignity.Bad health caused by poor sanitation has a knock-on effect on thefamily economy and nutrition.In many cultures women who have no access to a latrine must wait untilit is dark to go to the toilet or have to walk long distances to findan isolated spot. Where there are no toilets girls are prevented from going to school."

"This slum has existed for 10 years and is in a shocking state. Hanging latrines feed straight into a rubbish-filled ditch in themiddle of the slum. 5000 households here have no clean water and nosanitation. Many people get very ill here and I think it all stems from the open latrines. Smell the stench, it's disgusting. We get fevers, coughs andterrible diarrhea and there are no health care facilities that we canuse." explains Ruby from Balar Math Slum, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

I know this is a very unpleasant topic to read about, but it is important to consider ALL the aspects of poverty. It's easy to remember to be grateful that you have a full stomach, but how often do you think about your indoor plumbing? On a positive note, there is a Hunger Project web-page that outlinessome 2006 accomplishments. If you're interested, take a look to seewhat we've helped to make happen!

http://thp.org/reports/family/2007/jan/index.html

See you all in this week!

-Leah - VP of UVM FeelGood

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens canchange theworld;indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Mead

To UVM FeelGood - Happy 2007

To the amazing UVM Feelgood,

I just couldn't let you guys leave 2006 behind without a 'lil feelgoodreflection...
So, how will you remember this past year? Well, to start off you maywant to remember 2006 as the year you invested (roughly) (drum rollplease....)

$10,700 !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! to a world free from hunger. Add on the check we presented to the Hunger Project in May, and UVMfeelgood has raised around $18,700. How incredible. Think about otherall of the other feelgood kids across the country and theircontributions. Put togetherall of our passion, energy, and financial contributions. We are a student movement that is surely a force to be reckoned with.

There are millions of lives that will be affected as the change wecreate radiates throughout our world. Not only in the lives of ourpartners in the 2/3'rds world, but the in lives of our peers. We areshowing our generation that ending hunger and poverty is not animpossible unreachable goal. There are not only misconceptions aboutthe capabilities of our partners living in poverty, but about thecapabilities of ourselves as a generation. But, we all have theability to "shift that paradigm." 1) Hungry people are intelligent,worthy individuals who ask only for our partnership so they may endtheir own hunger and contribute significantly to society. 2) We, asyoung and responsible citizens of this world, can take on thatpartnership, and work to wards a world in which we can all be proud toinhabit together as equals.

I hope you are all empowered and fulfilled by this notion....Lets getready to start another year. This can only get better!

Business, Business.... Tomorrow is the first meeting of the semester. We will be opening thecounter this Tuesday! So the meeting is

MONDAY, JANUARY 22, 2007 @ 7:00 PM in the MLK LOUNGE (next to CC theater)

We will be sharing with you a couple of organizational changes we willbe implementing and of course opening up the floor to new ideas forthe semester.And if you are just joining feelgood this semester, we would love tosee your smiling faces there, so please come!

So here's to the kids who have probably consumed more cheese and breadthan anyone else in Burlington... I am continually thankful that I canspend my weeks with all of your amazing spirits and I can't wait tosee you all behind that counter!

-Leah Grossman

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens canchange theworld;indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."