Hamburg , June 2024 - on Mondays there is always "Love in Bags" at "Schrödinger's" cultural centre* in Eimsbüttel. People can pick up food donated by supermarkets or manufacturers there.
As part of Société Générale Insurance's sustainability strategy, employees (f,m,d) have the opportunity to take part in one volunteer day per year. This means that on this day, we don't do our own job, but a completely different one that is in some way charitable. Everyone can choose what that is: Environmental protection, helping the elderly, food bank, clothes distribution, animal welfare and much more.
My colleague Heike suggested "Liebe in Tüten" and we were warmly invited to help out at Schrödingers.
Everyone knows how to wait twice
The queue on the pavement was already visible when we arrived a good hour before the start. Other volunteers were already there, mostly young Ukrainian women who regularly help out here.
The food distribution is organised in a complex way: A mini-fee of €2 is required for the food and registration. Everyone gets this daily stamp for €2, as long as stocks last; the others have proof of basic income or pension. Around 200 tokens will be issued from 10 am. A small wooden ticket booth was built in the entrance area of the Kulturhaus around 3 years ago for this purpose. There is no pushing or shoving at the entrance - everyone seems to know the procedure. Thanks to the registration system, nobody is left empty-handed when the goods are handed out from 12 noon. Mischa, a young teacher of German and Russian who grew up in Hamburg, is responsible for handing out the tokens and the entrance. He also knows those who are allowed to wait on a bench in the garden beforehand and patiently explains how things work here. Some older people can't possibly queue twice. It's amazing that they've made it this far.
We help with the token allocation: people's eyes are full of expectation and without exception there is a friendly "thank you" or "pass". I learn that it means "thank you" and that a good 70% of the guests come from Ukraine.
The actual food distribution starts later because - and this is always a challenge for the organisers - the lorries with the goods only arrive one by one. And of course, no one knows what will be available that day and how much of each product will be distributed: on this Monday, there were pallets of ketchup, vegetarian sausage, pudding in a jar, sheep's cheese, biscuits, drinking yoghurt, almond milk - much of it from overproduction. Nothing that is handed out can be past its sell-by date. Large quantities of bread, rolls and cakes also arrive, which are delivered by the bakeries on the 2nd day after production. Fresh produce was also delivered: boxes of apples, potatoes, onions ... it smelled like a weekly market and everything looked crisp and fresh - just like in the shop.
The baked goods are packaged in family-sized bags - everyone wears disposable gloves - because nobody can take a sticky French roll. The tables are covered, but if it really rains cats and dogs, then all the helpers who run back and forth between the lorries and the serving line get wet.
A bag for everyone
Everyone is involved in packing the bread rolls: Ukrainian pop music is playing and people are laughing and bagging them up in no time at all. Once all the crumbs have been swept up, the boxes of perishable goods are unpacked. Yoghurt, for example, or cream cheese. Food comes in boxes, often in packs of 5 or 12. Everything has to be opened quickly - at just before 12 o'clock the queue on the pavement is already a good 150 metres long. And another lorry arrives. Strong helpers - mostly older men from the Ukraine - pick up the goods from the lorry. It would be far too heavy for the girls.
And then it starts: the very old are the first with their walking frames, in wheelchairs or on crutches. It takes a lot of effort to push along the delivery route. The bags are hanging from the trolleys and are being filled. At the very beginning, everyone (m,f,d) is given a bag of non-perishable items: Tinned food, pasta, rice, puree, for example. These bags have already been packed by the Schrödingers team and helpers on the Friday before. The number of bags also determines how many people can be fed on the day so that no one (f,m,d) goes away empty-handed. There were enough for 500 people. 397 people were counted - and all the fresh food could be distributed. The young helpers also each packed a bag with radishes, milk, apples and bread - to take home.
Everything is distributed shortly before 3 p.m. and the volunteers are exhausted. Then it's time to tidy up: every box is flattened or cut for recycling, all the plastic packaging is separated and the folding boxes are stacked - they go back to the markets. Without saying a word, everyone tackles where something is lying, knows where it belongs and helps us newcomers to do the same.
After washing our hands and taking a sip from the water bottle, we say goodbye to our colleagues for the day and promise to come back.
Our conclusion: a great working day with a warm onboarding, friendliness and the feeling of belonging without prejudice.
*Schrödingers" is, among other things, a cultural and non-profit organisation - but also an event location and meeting point from Tue to Thu for many Ukrainians, who can meet here and learn German or get help with forms or questions from the authorities. The "Liebe in Tüten" ("Love in Bags") campaign was created in cooperation with the food bank during Corona. The food day has remained from this time because demand is growing.
https://schroedingers.hamburg/verein/