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AUGUST NEWSLETTER

Campus Food Bank

Volume I, Issue 12

A NEW SCHOOL SEASON MEANS NEW CHANGES AT THE CAMPUS FOOD BANK!

Writers: Brooke McMillan, Stephanie Simpson, Jennifer Nguyen, Nehal Mahmoud, Adam MildenbergerEditors: Ashley Seibert, Jennifer NguyenWant to share a story? Send one to cfb.ad@su.ualberta.ca

Now that the school year is about to begin, the Campus Food Bank is preparing for the busy season ahead. One of the many exciting changes for the year is the incorporation of a third staff member, a new Program Coordinator! Please join us in welcoming Ms. Nehal Mahmoud, who will be working in the office for the 2011-2012 year. To give everyone a chance to learn more about Nehal, she’s written an introduction here below:

Hey CFB team! I’ll start off with the pronunciation of my name to make things easy for you – it’s KNEE (like your knee) and HAL (like Hal Johnson from Body Break, if you’re old enough to remember). I’m extremely excited to be working as the program coordinator with the CFB this year and can already feel all the passion and enthusiasm that just radiates from the team!

For a little bit of background, I’ve studied both Sciences at the University of Alberta and Public Relations at Grant MacEwan University. I’ve realized that public relations is my calling in life, and paired with my love for the non-profit sector, I’m hoping to work in PR for an international organization in the future. I was a part of the Canadian Red Cross’ public affairs team for two months and that experience reinforced the fact the PR is for me! The majority of the courses I’ll be taking this year are classes I need in order to apply for an International Relations masters program that I’m eyeing.

I adore traveling, except for the packing/unpacking and going through airports part. I’ve traveled across Europe and to some parts of the US, and I visit Egypt on a pretty regular

WELCOME TO THE CAMPUS FOOD BANK,

NEHAL MAHMOUD!

basis. I guess I should say that my background is Egyptian, so it definitely gives me an excuse to travel there often! Feel free to pass by just to chat or to share an awesome idea that you think should be included in a future event!

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The July Food Drive was a huge

success! During the week of July 19-23,

Campus Food Bank volunteers and

Strathcona Save-On-Foods staff worked

together to received over 2500 cans of

food. The items we were able to request

for this food drive were canned peaches

and canned fruit cocktail. We would like to

thank Wes Nishi once again, for helping

organizing this event, as well as Bryana

Rousselle, Inna Dymouriak, Roxana

Rahnama, Salman Ahmed, Colten

Yamagishi, Erin Kinsella, Selestia Herrera,

Philip Stachnik, Joshua Brochu, Nikki Gee,

Jasmine Shourounis, Allyson Seeney,

Raman Sahi, Sansitny Ruth, Arvin Abedi,

Samantha Lam, Allen Fu, Alex Wong, Neha

Kumari, Clarissa Atienza, Stephanie

Simpson, Nehal Mahmoud, and Darren

Horney for volunteering that week!

JULY BOARD REPORTTake a read at what Adam

Mildenberger, the Volunteer Representative, has to report from the last board meeting!

• The meeting we had on July 20th, 2011 did not have enough board members to meet quorum, according to section 5.1.5.4 in the CFB policies. This policy states that meetings must have 2/3 of the board members present to meet quorum, meaning that the board could not officially vote on any issues. Therefore, voting on the formal hiring of Nehal (more on that later) and the resignations of Kelsi Barkway and Janelle Morin have to be postponed until the next board meeting. Also to note since we are losing these two lovely ladies, the board is short on members. So if you know anyone that has any skills that the board needs (for example, meeting management skills) let the staff or myself know.

• The board welcomes Ms. Nehal Mahmoud to the new AED External position! She started on August 1st. If you haven’t met Nehal yet, swing by the office and say hi!

• The board is assembling a committee to review the hamper menu. If you would like to be on this committee let Ashley or myself know. No experience req’d! The board is also planning a big celebration for the 20th Anniversary Party of the CFB, in conjunction with the Mac & Cheese Affair in February. If you have any ideas to make the event amazing let me know. We will also review the CFB’s Strategic Plan at the next meeting, so be sure to attend! Volunteers are always welcome! Date of the meeting TBA, but please read CFB emails/drop by the office to find out!

The First Annual Summer Food Drive

Awesome job, CFB volunteers!Thank you for all your hard work!

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Volunteer of the Month:

THI DUONGCongratulations to Thi, who

is our outstanding volunteer for

the month of July! Thi has

shown tremendous

commitment to the CFB,

despite the fact that she is one

of our newest volunteers! Every

week, Thi is around the office

for at least 4 hours in a row,

helping out with everything from

unpacking groceries to working

on the Think Recycle program.

She also excels at taking

initiative to work on any tasks

that need to be completed.

Thanks, Thi!

With another school year about to begin, we all know what that means- more tuition fees and textbook costs! If you are looking for ways to get through the year without having as much to worry about, you should consider looking at some scholarships and awards that might help you through the year. For the new school year, each newsletter will feature a new scholarship that volunteers can consider applying to, and also reminders of upcoming scholarship deadlines. As a Campus Food Bank volunteer, you are always welcomed to ask for a character reference or a reference letter from staff. With that in mind, we just ask that you complete a reference letter request form in advance, and submit it to the appropriate staff member (since Jen works with most of the volunteers on a regular basis, she is probably the most prepared to write a reference letter for you). For the month of August, there are 2 upcoming awards that volunteers are encouraged to apply for. The first award is the Stars of Alberta Volunteer Awards. This award is accepted by nomination only, which means that if you know a fellow volunteer who you think would deserve this award, please let Jen know and she will submit a nomination for them! Or if you would like to nominate yourself, that is perfectly acceptable as well. The Stars of Alberta Volunteer Awards honour extraordinary Albertans whose volunteer achievements have contributed to the well-being of their community and fellow community members. Six awards, two in each category of youth, adult and senior are presented annually on or around International Volunteer Day, December 5. More information can be found here: http://culture.alberta.ca/voluntarysector/stars/default.aspx. The deadline for all nominations is September 30.

The second award that CFB volunteers are encouraged to consider is the Prime Minister’s Volunteer Awards. In particular, the National Award (Emerging Leader), and the Regional Awards (Community Leader, Business Leader, and Social Innovator) seem to describe a number of characteristics exhibited by many volunteers in the office. Award recipients will be recognized at an award ceremony which will be held in the winter and their achievements will be profiled. All award recipients will receive a medal, a Prime Minister’s Volunteer Awards pin and a letter of congratulations from the Prime Minister. In addition, regional award recipients will be eligible to identify a not-for-profit organization to receive a $5,000 grant. National award recipients will be eligible to identify a not-for-profit organization to receive a $10,000 grant. In order to be eligible to receive a grant, grant recipients must be not-for-profit organizations, including registered charities, helping improve life outcomes for people with disabilities, children and families, and other vulnerable populations. More information can be found here: http://pm.gc.ca/eng/feature.asp?pageId=154&featureId=25. These awards are also by nomination only, and the deadline for these is September 9. Please submit any nominations you may have to Jennifer at your earliest convenience.

Scholarships for Students and Volunteers

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Hey CFBers! I’m excited to share a quick and tasty recipe with you this month that features a well-known food staple around the CFB hamper room: beans! It is a light and refreshing summer salad that is so simple to make and packs a lot of protein, making it perfect to serve as a side salad or as a vegetarian main dish at all your summer BBQs. For more recipes visit my blog at brooke-bakes.blogspot.com. Hope everyone enjoys the last month of the summer! – Brooke McMillan

MARINATED BEAN SALAD

Ingredients:1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed1 can white navy beans, drained and rinsed1/4 of a red onion, finely diced2 cloves garlic, minced1/2 bunch fresh parsley, finely chopped2 Tbsp. olive oil2 tsp. lemon juice1-2 tsp. dried oregano or Italian seasoningSalt and pepper to taste

Directions:Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and gently stir to mix. Cover and refrigerate for 1-2 hours before serving. The longer you allow it to marinate the more flavourful it will be!

⅔ cup honey1½ tsp vanilla extract¼ tsp kosher salt1½ cups add-ins (dried fruit, nuts, chocolate)

2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal1 cup slivered almonds1 cup unsweetened shredded coconut ½ cup toasted wheat germ

Ingredients

DirectionsPreheat oven to 350°F. Butter an 8x12-inch baking dish and line with parchment paper. Spread oatmeal, almonds and coconut on a large baking sheet and bake for 10-12 minutes or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Pour warm oatmeal mixture into a large bowl, add wheat germ, and stir to combine. Add honey, vanilla and salt and stir to combine. Add any additions and stir to combine.Pour oatmeal mixture into prepared baking dish and, using a silicone spatula or wet fingers, press the mixture into the dish until you can press it down no more! Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden. Let cool for 2-3 hours and cut into bars or squares using a sharp serrated knife. Store bars in an air-tight container in the freezer to maintain crispness.

Granola BarsMakes 12-24, depending on how you slice them

Adapted from smittenkitchen.com

Hey guys, Steph here! With camping season in full swing and school just around the corner, there’s no better time to make granola bars! They’re packed with tasty, nutritious stuff (like oats, almonds and wheat germ) and totally customizable (try dark chocolate and cherry, or milk chocolate and roasted peanuts!) - perfect! For more awesome, easy recipes, head over to www.foodhappy.ca or drop me a line at steph@foodhappy.ca. Hope you enjoy the rest of your summer!

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Referral of the Month: CAPSThe referral of the month for August is CAPS:

Your U of A Career Centre. CAPS is a University

student service and the source for career

and employment information and

expertise at the University of Alberta.

They offer a number of career services

and resources to assist University of

Alberta students and alumni in making

transitions to, and within, the world of work. They

provide the essential link between those looking for work and those looking to hire. CAPS assists

employers with their recruitment by helping

them connect with students and alumni at

the U of A. They offer Information

Sessions, Briefing Sessions, Career Fairs,

Conferences, Seminars and various job

posting up at their office in 2-100 SUB, or

check out http://www.caps.ualberta.ca/

Check it Out:

CAPS can help improve your resume and cover letters for

job interviews. They also offer mock interviews and helpful information sessions for a

variety of faculties and graduate programs throughout

the year!

UPCOMING EVENTS IN AUGUST AUGUST 9TH AUGUST 18TH AUGUST 22ND AUGUST 24ND

August Birthday Cake Day

WECAN Pick-up Day

Fall U-Pass Available at

InfoLink - avoid line-ups by

getting yours early!

August Social Event: Picnic Time! 6pm,

Location TBA

CAPS: Your U of A Career

Centre

NEED HELP WITH RESUMES AND COVER LETTERS ?

AUGUST 26-28 AUGUST 29TH AUGUST 31ST AUGUST BIRTHDAYS

Fall 2011 Team Leader Retreat at

Pigeon Lake

Fall Volunteer Schedule is Open

- Sign up soon!

Graduate Students’

Association Orientation

David F. - Aug. 5Rafael S. - Aug.6Linda Y. - Aug. 13Erin K. - Aug. 22Juliet N. - Aug. 27Bailey S. - Aug. 28 Laura L. - Aug. 31

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JULY MEMORIES

Food drive

photos!

On July 10, CFB volunteers and staff went to

Sahkespeare in the Park for a fantastic

performance of Othello!