What a beautiful city Seattle is and a great place to serve!\u00a0 The PV Volunteers spent each day doing something different but I chose to reflect on our time at Westside Baby.\u00a0 So today we\u2019re off to recycle infant car seats, more about this later and what exactly that means. Since arriving in Seattle we\u2019ve been introduced to a way of living that all states should take note.\u00a0 Everything possible is recycled. And you better learn quickly what specific \u201ccan\u201d things go in \u2013 trash, recycle, compostable.<\/p>\n
Upon our arrival at Westside Baby we were given a tour of this large facility. The organization of anything needed for babies and toddlers is incredible. There are rows, rows, and more rows of neatly packed and labeled totes.\u00a0 There is the clothing area, the diaper area, the toy area, the car seat area, the book area, the area for high chairs, walkers, etc.\u00a0 You get the idea.<\/p>\n
A thorough explanation of how these items are dispensed to families in need was given and also the sophisticated system where social agency workers can place an order online for clients and their needs.\u00a0 Orders are filled and placed on shelves for pickup within a week.<\/p>\n
And of course, we also saw the mounds of gently-used clothing that needed to be sorted and put away.\u00a0 The car seat, toy and accessory area was fascinating.\u00a0 Any donated item is cross checked in volumes of catalogs to make sure the item has not been recalled.\u00a0 Every car seat is put through a rigorous safety check as well, a time-consuming process for volunteers.\u00a0\u00a0 It was explained that Westside Baby accepts all car seats and then weeds out unsafe or outdated seats.\u00a0 A car seat is automatically put in the car seat graveyard if it is older than six years.<\/p>\n
From here car seats are either cleaned and put on the shelves, with an instruction manual, or stacked outside to be dismantled for recycling.\u00a0 Here is where the PV Volunteer work day began.\u00a0 The car seats needed to be torn down so all metal and plastic are separated.\u00a0 PV Volunteers spent the better part of the day, with the assistance of Gary, doing this.\u00a0 In a short time we all became adept at using the tools provided.\u00a0 We picked a great day for this outside work site, sunny and warm (not the Seattle rain we expected) and there was much cheering as the last car seat was tossed on top of the pile of scrap plastic.<\/p>\n
Last year 22,000 clients were served by Westside Baby. What a successful operation!\u00a0 The need is so great.\u00a0 And this only works because of the generosity of the local folks who bring donations and also the many volunteers who pour over those donations to get them ready for clients.\u00a0 There is even a retired librarian who organizes the book area.\u00a0 An age-appropriate book is included in every order placed.<\/p>\n
When we left Westside Baby, the huge mountain of car seats in the graveyard was our reward of a job well done.\u00a0 And reflecting upon the clients of Westside Baby, I could easily\u00a0 picture the beautiful face of an infant snuggled in a blanket or safely secured in a car seat, all provided by Westside Baby.\u00a0 What a perfect way to end our service week in Seattle!<\/p>\n
Kathy Koller<\/p>\n
Kathy and her husband Chuck and their three children began volunteering in 1997. The have spent part of each summer in WV and participated in the inaugural trip to Seattle.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" What a beautiful city Seattle is and a great place to serve!\u00a0 The PV Volunteers spent each day doing something different but I chose to reflect on our time at Westside Baby.\u00a0 So today we\u2019re off to recycle infant car … Continue reading