LASA gathered at the Huntington to bus to our shift at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. The Food Bank partners with local organizations to serve 300,000 people a month. The massive warehouse and community of volunteers are a testament to Angelenos’ commitment to civic engagement. We learned that Los Angeles is the hunger capital of the country – and all of the efforts of the Food Bank and its partners to address this crisis of food insecurity. 
LASA was assigned the sorting of apples, pears, cabbage, and
carrots. And while we sorted, we had a chance to talk and learn more about each other. Although everyone put in quite an effort, LASA carrot sorters won the day. Together with the rest of the volunteers on Saturday, the Food Bank shared that we handled 29,000 pounds of food.
When we returned to the Huntington, Kenneth Chancey joined us to share his personal story and the details of his current work as Legislative Deputy to Councilman Marqueece Harris-Dawson. From his experiences with homelessness and the foster care system to his analysis of the economic realities of the Los Angeles of today and tomorrow, Kenneth helped us consider possibilities for political engagement.
Thanks to Kenneth for his words and to all the LASA students for their Food Bank work. We look forward to our time together in March.