This morning I had the opportunity to volunteer at the office of the Metropolitan Tenants Organization. The mission of the Metropolitan Tenants Organization is to educate, organize and empower tenants to have a voice in the decisions that affect the affordability and availability of safe, decent and accessible housing.
The MTO has a wide range of programs to assist and educate tenants including Building Organizing, Healthy Homes Program, Tenant’s Rights Hotline and Tenant Congress. Their website holds an extensive library of informative articles, FAQs and videos.
A few weeks ago I read a post by MTO on VolunteerMatch asking for IT and HTML help. I called MTO and asked Rebecca McDannald (Hotline/Volunteer Supervisor) if I could help. We were able to set up a date and time when I could come in.
Rebecca had a list of problem computers ready for me when I arrived and I spent the day maintaining and testing several desktops and laptops. I wasn’t able to fix everything, but put a good dent in her list.
While I was working there I was able to hear the volunteers on the Tenants Rights Hotline and they definitely have their work cut out for them. I could only imagine what the person on the other side of the telephone was saying.
The staff there was very friendly and appreciative of my help. They had heard I was coming in and about my goal. One woman who read my blog said she was impressed with my project. It wasn’t hard work and I knew of the MTO before I saw their posting, but it was definitely an education.
This was number 35 and just fifteen more to go.