On Saturday, December 10, 2011, staff from the KRA/CTWorks One-Stop in North Central Connecticut participated in the annual, company-wide KRA Community Care Day celebration. The East Hartford Community Shelter welcomed 10 KRA volunteers, who came fully prepared to serve a hot lunch to more than 30 residents of the shelter, including men, women, and children. In addition to flatware, plates, cups, etc., each volunteer brought a different dish: chicken, ziti, meatballs, rice, salad, soda, and pie and brownies for dessert. Among the residents were a toddler and her mother, who is also a customer of the KRA/CTWorks’ Jobs First Employment Services Program. She told us, “I didn’t realize you guys did this sort of thing and you’re not getting paid right now, so you must really care.”
The KRA team had prepared so much food that residents not able to be there for lunch, enjoyed a delicious home-cooked dinner when they returned to the Shelter. The team was even able to provide food to the Shelter’s sister program, a rooming house for homeless veterans located down the street. In addition to volunteering at the Shelter, the KRA team collected more than 300 items to donate the Shelter, including clothing, toys, and non-perishable food items. The East Hartford Shelter, the only shelter in the Greater Hartford area that serves single men and women, and their children, serves over 400 residents a year and has been serving the community for more than 15 years. Steven Biglor, Shelter Program Director, extended a big “thank you” to KRA and said he is already looking forward to next year’s Community Care Day event.