Operation Rice Bowl

On March 10 in CCD, Leah received a "rice bowl," which is a little cardboard bowl for CRS (Catholic Relief Services) Operation Rice Bowl campaign.  It was a nice little project for Lent.  We learned that CRS distributes 75% of the donations it receives globally and 25% in the US.  The money helps with food pantries, food donations, clean water, micro-loans, etc.  The rice bowl came with a poster, which we hung on the pantry door.  There were stories, one to be read each week of Lent, about families from around the world explaining their challenges and how the CRS donations helped.  There was also a meatless recipe from that region of the world accompanying the story.  While we did not try any of the recipes (did you expect anything different from us?), what I really liked was the awareness the project raised.  That first night, while we were eating dinner, I read the first story.  I told Leah and Aaron how a $10 donation, which was less than what we spent eating lunch out that day, would feed a family of six for two weeks.  We talked about how lucky we were to be able to not only have enough to eat but enough money to eat at a restaurant.  Or how we can turn on a faucet and get clean water while some people have to spend a good portion of their day having to go find clean water. 

That night at dinner we came up with a plan of how we could help.  The three of us decided that for the remainder of Lent we would not go out for lunch after church and instead donate the money we would have spent instead.  Leah decided that she might want to donate her weekly allowance. (She didn't but it was nice she considered it.)  Aaron did not like that idea.  Leah and I also decided we would give up "Popcorn Friday" for the remainder of Lent and donate that money too.  Aaron really did not like that idea.  (Popcorn Friday, btw, is a morale booster Leah's school's PTO does on Fridays after school.  They sell popcorn, cookies, ice cream treats, etc. for $0.50 - $0.75 each.)  Because of Easter and Spring Break following we ended up having to turn in the rice bowl on Palm Sunday, only a couple weeks after we had received it but we still managed to donate $24.00.  And we kept to our Lenten promise for the final week even though we weren't donating the money.  I was really proud of Leah because she was the one who always brought it up saying things like, "No Popcorn Friday today so people who can't afford food can eat.  I will definitely do this project again next year even if our church here doesn't distribute the bowls again.  It is a great lesson for both Leah and Aaron to learn to be thankful for what they have and to learn about the world around them.

If you want to learn more about Operation Rice Bowl, go to their website at: http://www.crsricebowl.org/.