Enewsletter
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Enewsletter • October 10, 2012 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Notes from Vegan OutreachGet Your Newsletter On!Vegan Outreach’s annual print newsletter is at the printer! If you would like to receive a copy, or if you need to update your address, please contact us at this link! We promise you’ll love this year’s edition!
Activist Profile: Kassy OrtegaContinuing our series of activist profiles, we head to SoCal and talk with Kassy Ortega. Interning for Vegan Outreach with Nikki Benoit, Kassy has reached over 14,000 students already this term! Here are some excerpts: What was your most positive leafleting experience and why? So far, I cannot say that I have only one positive experience that trumps all, but about every time I leaflet at a school I have at least one student who comes up to me with questions about the information that I am handing out, wanting answers and wanting to make a difference in the lives of animals. All the individuals who come forward wanting to change their lives in some way to better the animals, the world and themselves, makes leafleting a positive experience in general. This work is life changing to the individuals that you reach and also to yourself. What would you say to individuals hesitant about leafleting? Anyone can leaflet! Being nervous is completely normal. A crowd of people racing around at a class change can be intimidating if you are leafleting on your own for the first time. If you want to get involved in leafleting and have never done it before, have a friend join you the first couple times around to ease the butterflies. Once you become comfortable with approaching others with a booklet, you will find out how easy it really is!
From “Your Daily Dose of Vegan Outreach!” Blog
Products of the WeekDesign Specimen – makers of “Jewelry with a Message” – is a great place to get message necklaces, earrings, etc. They are also generous supporters of Vegan Outreach.
Sophie’s Kitchen makes amazing vegan “seafood” products, and are also supporters of Vegan Outreach! Please submit your nominees for product of the week via this page; previous entries here.
Notes from Our Members
At
Cal State Los Angeles, Chuck and
I heard from numerous veggies, and watched the
blinders get blown off numerous others. It’s
crazy to think folks are still in the dark on
this issue, but inspiring to see that all it
takes is one flip of the switch. Shazam.
Over 1,550 students
today at Irvine Valley College. Today’s encounters
were so rad, I was looking for the camera crew
all day. For example, Crystal [above] got a booklet,
asked for a few extras for her sustainability
club. Comes back ten minutes later, puts her
stuff down and starts leafleting with me. Later,
Sonja stopped and asked for ways to get involved;
we exchanged info. Amir [left]…this cat comes back
to me with the booklet saying, “What do
I do to help?” I say, “Help me leaflet.”
He says, “Ok. What else?” I say, “Stop
eating the animals and their parts.” “Of
course, that’s done as of the second I glanced
through that booklet. This is disgusting. And
horrible.” And he’s a natural leafleter!
He’ll be joining me at many more colleges going
forward.
Diane,
the leafleting rock star, was
back in action on her two-year
veganversary – congrats Diane! We reached 898
students at De Anza College – amazing for summer
session!
Pam
and I reached 300 people at Navy
Pier. We both had great conversations. One person
took booklets for friends; another gave Pam
a big hug, and one woman yelled out of her car
how much her son loved the magazine we had given
him. Another lady said that she had gotten a
booklet the week before and that she was making
changes to reduce farmed animal suffering. Her
boyfriend remarked about how extreme the cruelty
is that we subject them to and then said, “And
we call them animals.”
Receptive
crowd at the farmers’ market.
I was pleasantly surprised by the heartfelt
reactions I got! Watched many people reading
the booklet. One person came back to tell me
they plan to go vegan over the next few months. Good
to be back! Great conversations
at Suffolk County Community College, where I
reached over 1,000 students. Conversations about
starting a group on campus, and met 11
vegetarians, 4 vegans. Also received the
emails of a few people who want more info, and
one who wants to get involved in leafleting.
Good conversations
at Willamette University and Linfield
College. Some students said they still had their
booklets from last year. A young woman who has
been vegan two months wondered whether she was
getting good nutrition, and was very happy to
get a Guide with nutrition information.
A young man who had taken a booklet before approached
me and said, “I just want to say, thank
you for doing this.” Another young man
pointed to the booklet he had taken, saying,
“They feed me this stuff in the cafeteria.”
I asked, “Do they serve vegetarian?”
He said, “They probably do. I should probably
try it.” It
was great to return to college leafleting and
set a new one-day record for students reached at
a Virginia community college – 1,325, and six
others given a Guide. Several people
commented that I was a “warrior” and
such for leafleting many hours in the hot sun.
I had good conversations with a guy who had
just celebrated his three-year anniversary as
a vegan, a young woman who wants to get involved
with local outreach, and a guy who told me that
he’s vegan until 6pm every day. Jovan joined
me to hit the All Stars Tour at
the Congress Theater, where we had a very receptive
audience. The doorman asked me about what we
were doing and said he agreed that meat causes
unnecessary suffering; then as kids were leaving,
he told them, “Take a flier!” They
also let us stand by the door though they shooed
everyone else away. We heard from many vegetarians
and vegans.
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