MORE THAN WELL DESERVED!!!
Hats off and big bows to all of you!
Thank you,
Arlene Acuna
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Yay! Congratulations You certainly deserve it😊
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BRAVO!! I am so proud of you. You deserve all the accolades you get.
Best,
Karen Cilman
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Dear HelpBerkeleyRations,
(I haven’t figured out the website yet, so am just replying on this notice of your well-deserved award)
I want to thank you so much for this HelpBerkeleyRations project. My husband and I have been sheltering in place for almost a year in that we never go into stores or restaurants - we do go for walks in our neighborhood but that is about it. I am only 64 but my husband is 80 and has Parkinson’s disease and dementia which makes him a high risk for Covid-19 on top of his age. Yet he is still himself in many ways and misses going out with me to cafes for meals like we used to do occasionally before the pandemic.
These meals are a big help to me in not having to come up with a dinner every day, as I am often tired and sleep-deprived from taking care of him 24/7, and I can’t leave him alone at home to go out and pick up anything.
Speaking for myself, I am lonely and miss our former life very much myself! These dinners are not only a relief for me in not having to come up with a dinner every day, but also a little bit like getting to have a restaurant date with him again after all this time.
The volunteers are amazing, it is very hard to find our apt in this large confusing apartment complex, and they manage to find it almost every time - once in the pouring rain. They really go above and beyond. I also want to thank all the restaurants involved, for the delicious meals and for helping people like us who are stuck at home and don’t feel safe even to come inside to pick up for take-out.
Thank you to everybody involved with HelpBerkeleyRations!
Sincerely,
Ingrid Crickmore
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Congratulations! Well deserved!!
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Congratulations!!
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Well deserved! You all have made such a difference during this difficult time. I feel so grateful for the sense of community and nurturance you have given me. Thank you.
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congratulations! It is well deserved.
audrey Nulman
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Congrats on the Jefferson award, Michel. It is well-deserved. Hopefully we can rejoin the effort in a couple of months.
Jack & Annie
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Dear Michel and HelpBerkeley,
I wanted to personally congratulate you Michel on winning the Jefferson Award. I’m so grateful for all that you’ve done for our community, and for the amazing HelpBerkeley volunteers and participating restaurants. HelpBerkeley has been such a bright light during ‘covid’ – especially the lovely Thanksgiving and December holiday meals. I live alone and they provided nourishment and festivity, so special.
Best,
Lynn Orlando
(registered on HelpBerkeley as Luna)
Today’s 2/10/2021 Berkeleyside sweet article about you and HelpBerkeley:
HelpBerkeley founder wins a Jefferson Award
Michel Thouati won a Bay Area Jefferson Award for Public Service for founding HelpBerkeley, a delivery service that provides restaurant meals to COVID-compromised seniors in Berkeley, Albany and Kensington. Photo: Pete Rosos
Michel Thouati — founder of HelpBerkeley, a volunteer-run group that delivers low-cost restaurant meals to COVID-vulnerable seniors — has recently received a Bay Area Jefferson Award for Public Service. Since early in the pandemic, HelpBerkeley volunteers have delivered more than 25,000 meals to people aged 60 and older in Berkeley, Albany and Kensington. At the same time, the organization provides some revenue for participating restaurants, along with a chance for business owners to give back to their communities. (Read more about HelpBerkeley in Kristina Sepetys’ feature for Nosh.)
The Jefferson Awards for Public Service are given to “ordinary people who do extraordinary things without expectation of recognition.” When Nosh spoke with Thouati about the award, he was thrilled for the recognition, but wanted to clarify that “the Jefferson is not really going to me but to HelpBerkeley,” he said, “We are a truly collective group.” Thouati was also glad that the award was given just as HelpBerkeley is about to launch a new program this month. During the Christmas season, about 50 HelpBerkeley drivers delivered 1,038 free meals to seniors, and now the group wants to continue delivering free or subsidized meals on a weekly basis. Along with its cadre of volunteers, HelpBerkeley is powered by donations made by generous community members, and Thouati is hopeful the recent Jefferson win will inspire more people to give to the cause. Congrats to Thouati and hats off to all the HelpBerkeley volunteers!
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