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Without a doubt our students are always going above and beyond with their service hours. This special holiday season we want to highlight the acts of kindness that one of our very own students is performing for others in our community. We recently learned about the heartwarming and exemplary volunteer work that Drake Michael '23 has done at The Poverello House.
A year and a half ago Drake started volunteering regularly at The Poverello House (sometimes 3 times a week during the summer), which is a non-
profit organization that provides meals, shelter and social services for the underserved in Fresno.
Drake started going there for a couple of reasons: first, because he needed to complete 20 volunteer hours every academic year like every student at Memorial, but more importantly because he thought it would make sense to complete those hours doing something that would really have an impact on peoples lives.
Back in the spring of 2021, the world was slowly starting to reopen from the COVID lockdowns, and it was apparent that there was desperation and uncertainty everywhere. He felt there wasn’t much he could do to help those affected by the pandemic, but he could make a small difference at the most basic level of need. So that is why he chose to go to The Poverello House. He visits a few times a month. At Poverello he makes sandwiches, prepares lunches, sweeps the floors, cuts vegetables, wipes counters, sorts canned food, organizes shelves,
folds napkins, serves meals - he'll do anything and everything that’s needed.
He says that it's not much what he does, but he feels that even in this "small way he is [making a difference] in the world."
The kitchen is run by men who are a part of the on-site residential program, and over the months he has gotten to know many of them. They are from all walks of life, and he has developed a profound sense of empathy and respect for them through their stories of how they got there and their commitment to get better.
Over the summer he decided to use his creativity to further benefit Poverello, so he designed a variation of their logo to be used on a limited edition of t-shirts and hats. Poverello is all about providing hope, so he thought "GROWING HOPE" would be an appropriate tagline, especially given his own family farming roots.
Drake worked with his parents to have t-shirts and hats made with his redesigned logo. This was a creative and fun way to spread the word about The Poverello House and also raise money to support it.
For every $25 donation he give away a t-shirt, and for every $30 donation he gave away a hat, with 100% of the proceeds going to The Poverello House. He added that they also donated hats and t-shirts to the men in the residential treatment program, who would appreciate a little variety in their daily mandatory dress code options.
He reached out to sponsors and donors (friends and family) himself and raised over $13,000 that went directly to support The Poverello House.
"It makes me very happy every time I see many of the residents wearing my design. Volunteering there has taught me how amazing The Poverello House is and how much they do for the community. All I had to do was ask and I was able to help The Poverello House provide for our community even more. Volunteering there has taught me so much and I still volunteer at least once a week." -Drake Michael
Drake we are extremely proud of your visionary efforts, commitment to better the lives of those around you and empathy towards others. You are truly an inspirational young human being. Thank you for allowing us to share your story!
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