Humanitarian

Start the New Year off right! Join us as we get together to help those in need at this CMG Gives Back event to distribute food at the Champion Food Pantry! We’ve created a great little community of Movie Group friends! Rather than see a movie this time, we’ll help “Create a better world” by helping serve people in need. Here are complete details and our plan for this event: CHAMPION FOOD PANTRY: The Champion Food Pantry provides needed food to neighbors experiencing food insecurity. For this event, we’ll be volunteering to help with Food Distribution during client pick up times. Our group will receive on-the-spot training from some of their seasoned regular volunteers. PLAN FOR CHAMPION FOOD PANTRY: Please arrive by 2:45pm. Our volunteer time will be from 3:00 to 6:00pm. LOCATION & PARKING: The Champion Food Pantry is located at 1460 S. Champion Ave in Columbus. Parking is located in the lot on Frebis across from the pantry. Please enter through the door marked "Volunteers enter here” on Frebis Ave. A map has been uploaded to the photos. IMPORTANT REMINDER: Our group will be providing the majority of the volunteers on this day so a firm RSVP count is essential. Please only sign up if you are certain you’ll be able to attend. If something unavoidable comes up, please update your RSVP no later than one week prior to the event. No shows or cancelations within 1 week of the event will mak you ineligible for future CMG Gives Back events. I appreciate your understanding as we try to ensure the agencies have the volunteers needed to provide the essential services they provide to the vulnerable population they serve. LINKS & INFO: Below are some links / attachments with additional info/details: • Champion Food Pantry Civil Rights Training: Attached file. • Champion Food Pantry Parking and Entrance: Attached file. • Champion Food Pantry Orientation Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_0wI-AwOYLY • Link with Additional Details / Info: https://lss.vomo.org/opportunity/foodpantrieschampion THANK YOU: This CMG Gives Back event provides an opportunity for YOU to get involved in helping others in our community! But the benefits go well beyond the help we give to others. Volunteering can provide a wide range of personal benefits, including positive effects on mental and physical health, reduced stress/depression/anxiety, increased happiness and improved purpose, life-satisfaction and personal well-being! Plus, the opportunity to get involved, connect with others and help those in need. PARTNER AGENCY: This event is hosted by Lutheran Social Services (LSS), which serves thousands of people in need each day in 27 Ohio counties by addressing the four core societal issues of food, shelter, safety and healing. LSS offers food through the LSS Food Pantries, housing and supportive services through LSS Faith Mission and LSS Faith Mission of Fairfield County homeless shelters, domestic violence services through LSS CHOICES for Victims of Domestic Violence, senior living and health care, affordable housing communities, and other services that uplift families and strengthen communities. Thanks for your help and look forward to seeing you there, Dan

Join us every 3rd Sunday of the month right after the Sunday Service for our Potluck Fellowship — a warm and welcoming time to connect, share, and celebrate community together! Bring your favorite dish to share (homemade or store-bought — all are welcome) and enjoy a delicious meal with friends old and new. It’s a wonderful opportunity to relax, laugh, and deepen your connections. Come hungry for good food, uplifting conversation, and heartfelt fellowship!

**Community Dance – Every Friday at Unity of Columbus** Let go of the week’s stress and move into joy! Join us every Friday for an evening of community, connection, and dance at Unity of Columbus. It’s a chance to meet new friends, express yourself through movement, and experience the emotional healing that comes from music and rhythm. No dance experience needed — just bring your energy, an open heart, and your dancing shoes! Dance is freedom. Dance is healing. Dance is fun.

Volunteer with Westerville Queer Collective and the Neurospicy Meetup to build care packages for local unhoused folks, which will be distributed throughout local camps and neighborhoods via Heer2Serve (501c3). Will you donate any items? If so, comment what will you bring Please make sure clothing items are clean and if you’re donating food, ready to be eaten without a stove or microwave. We expect to assemble around 50-100 packages, so if you’ll purchase items, please consider that amount (ie bulk individually packaged candies etc.). Fun and interesting book or entertainment item donation also welcome! Package assembly will take place on January 17th from 10-12 am. Location TBA but will be in Westerville, Ohio.

We're collaborating with Westerville Queer Collective to gather supplies and pack care packages. Head over to their event page to [register](https://www.meetup.com/meetup-group-wroejsfn/events/312453970/) officially. We’ll be assembling care packages with food, warm weather supplies, recreational items like books, and resource guides for local unhoused folks. Packages will then be delivered to HEER2SERVE, local nonprofit that has weekly “serves”, when they go out into local encampment areas and deliver needed items and food. Our care packages will be a part of that. WQC will supply containers and food items for the care packages. So this time we are primarily focusing on gathering donations for keeping warm, including up to 50 of the following items: Clean or new socks, hats, scarves and gloves Handwarmers Sanitizing wipes Lighters You are welcome to contribute items or just come and help pack. Leave a comment if you are bringing donations. We can also accept money donations through WQC.

This is a free, in person meeting. Burdened by a stressful relationship? Unhealthy relationships can trigger feelings of anger, despair or self-doubt. They can create dwindling spirals of fights and seeking to make-up, or trying to “pin the blame” on someone or something. If you don’t find the RIGHT reasons, or select the correct sources of the problem, the problem can just get worse and worse. Whether in love or personal ties, with friends or at work, our life really IS affected by the quality of our relationships. Good ones can promote pleasure and survival while less optimum ones can lead to annoyance, anger, self-doubt, stress, or even affect our health and ability to survive well. Whether you are suffering from a divorce, or a painful break-up, don’t know who to trust (or who to CHOOSE) as a partner, friend, boss or employee - the anxiety of relationship troubles can really make a mess of things. Maybe you’ve suffered a betrayal, or are dealing with hostility or criticalness or invalidation. Dwindling relationships can involve destructive behavior, where we hurt those we love, or start succumbing to self-destructive thoughts, attitudes or behaviors that spiral out of control and affect much more than our immediate relationship. Past losses in love or life can affect how we act or react to new people and situations and hold us back from even starting to create new, possibly great relationships! How can one get back onto a saner course of action? Come to our Meetup, where we can introduce you to some of the knowledge, tools and techniques of the breakthroughs in the field of the mind that we can apply to this ever important area of life: human relationships! Break free from self imposed limitations Here we will discuss: • How to “erase” the trauma of past hurts and betrayals so that one isn’t always repeating past mistakes. • Why and how do the negative emotions of others affect you? • Why is my partner withdrawing and what can I do about it? • Why do we sometimes feel compelled to hurt the ones we love? • Fights & arguments - what's really behind them? • What underlies “corrosive criticism” or the need to invalidate self or others? • How one can stably change one’s outlook on life so they can affect positive change? • Where do compulsive destructive behaviors come from and what can be done about them? • How to form closer bonds & keep growing the relationships with the people you care about? • How to enhance one’s own ability to survive and create positive healthy relationships whether in love, family & friendships or in work, business or one’s career? Relationships can be hard and life itself IS challenging. Why not arm yourself with the knowledge and breakthroughs that have been made about the mind, mental reactions & interpersonal relationships, so that one has better awareness and control over themselves and life in general. Learn where painful experiences are “stored” and how they can unknowingly affect us. You will also find out how one can “erase” those past painful experiences so that one is free to move forward without being tripped up by the past. Learn too, about what can lead some people to become “toxic” personalities and how to identify those traits in others so you won’t be tripped up trusting the wrong person. Our free Meet-ups occur in a safe environment where one can learn, without fear of judgment or criticism, and without the recommendation of harmful mental techniques or therapies, just how YOU can get yourself onto a happier & more successful path: in love & in life. We look forward to having you join us! This class is sponsored by the Dianetics & Scientology Life Improvement Center of Central Ohio.

Sleep in on Sundays. When you've had your fill of pajama-time, roll out and have some tasty brunch with your fellow Humanists!

Interested? Contact Preston Moore k.preston.moore@gmail.com 614-300-5989 ———————————— Engaging in men’s work is the new way to forge friendships while being open-minded to personal growth. Many men experience healthier relationships, personally and professionally, by engaging in this work. Open Men’s Group is a container for men to share vulnerably without receiving judgment or feedback. We believe that emotionally mature, powerful, compassionate, and purpose-driven men will help heal some of society’s deepest wounds. We support the powerful brilliance of men and we are willing to look at, and take full responsibility for, the pain we are also capable of creating – and suffering. We care deeply about men, our families, communities, and the planet. Visit ManKind Project USA to discover more. https://mkpusa.org/

Ciao a tutt\*! I want to revive this group! Let's meet Monday at 6.30pm at the Upper Arlington Library (Tremont Branch) in Meeting Room A to speak in Italian for 1 hour.

Christians in Tech is a community at the intersection of faith and technology. Our meetups are designed to spark meaningful conversations, promote knowledge sharing, and encourage growth—both in your career and your spiritual walk with God. Whether you're an experienced professional or just starting your tech journey, CIT welcomes you. Our Website [https://linktr.ee/citcbus](https://linktr.ee/citcbus) Sponsors and Partners * Improving (Venue Sponsor) * Bethel World Prayer Center (Fiscal Sponsor) * Fruits & Roots (Coffee Partner)

This meetup is a collaborative Unity workshop focused on real projects and shared problem-solving. Instead of talks or presentations, attendees bring a Unity project they’re actively working on and collaborate through discussion, troubleshooting, and hands-on exploration. The format is flexible and community-driven. You might debug a tricky issue, improve your workflow, explore performance optimizations, or get feedback on architecture, tools, and implementation approaches. Learning happens by doing, asking questions, and helping each other. **What to Expect:** * Bring-your-own Unity project (any level) * Group discussion and peer feedback * Debugging, optimization, and workflow problem-solving * Shared tips, best practices, and practical solutions Example projects may include games, tools, or prototypes—personal or professional. All experience levels are welcome. Whether you’re just getting started or refining advanced systems, this is a supportive space to learn and build together. **Food and drinks provided. Join us to learn, collaborate, and connect.**

Come assist Van Buren Shelter (https://ymcacolumbus.org/locations/vanburen) staff in serving dinners and cleaning up on the 3rd Tuesday of each month. Dinner for the women is 5-6 pm and for the families is 6:15-7:15 pm. There is ample free parking available in the shelter's lot. The recommended area to park is in green in the image above. There will be a new entrance for the time being. We are asking all volunteers to enter through the Donation Dock door, the orange mark on the image above. This door is located between the Single Adults and Family Shelter. You will see 2 large garage doors with a large green trash compactor in the center. Please head to the closest garage door to the building wall, with a ramp leading up. There, you will see a door with a sign stating instructions on how to enter the building. Please ring the doorbell, and a staff member will come and escort you into the building. If a staff member takes longer than 5 minutes, please call the front desk at 614-689-2020. This is a new process for us, and we do not want to keep you waiting! We appreciate your patience as we navigate this temporary change. The shelter needs a volunteer count the day before the event so sign-up ends Monday at 4:50 PM. Afterwards some of us go to the Omnipresent Atheists Weekly Meetup in progress to have a bit to eat or drink (http://www.meetup.com/omnipresentatheists/). Volunteers must be 14 or older. Since we will be working around families, the YMCA does not permit volunteering by individuals with convictions for violent or sexual crimes. The YMCA reserves the right to run background checks on volunteers. For questions, comment on this page or contact: Andrew, awhit12@yahoo.com, (614)937-5802 (cell). Please let Andrew know if you volunteer anytime other than our COUNT events so that he can count your hours toward our service record.

We are recruiting new group leaders for virtual men's groups! Our primary groups are outdoor movement groups, but we are launching virtual groups for the state of Ohio and beyond and the groups will move outside in the spring, creating room for men's groups, women's groups and coed groups all over the country. Read below to learn about our groups and click the links at the bottom to apply. ### **What is an Outdoor Empowerment Group?** Our Outdoor Movement & Community Empowerment Groups are simple, guided experiences designed to help people reconnect with nature, themselves, and others. We combine some form of movement (hike, walk, run, bike, yoga, workout) and meaningful conversation within a simple community circle to create a space where individuals can support each other while prioritizing mental and physical well-being. Whether you’re seeking stress relief, personal growth, or community, our groups offer everyone a unique and welcoming environment. ## **Why Join?** * **Improve Mental & Physical Well-Being** – Movement, nature, and supportive conversations reduce stress and promote balance. * **Feel Less Alone** – Build genuine connections with like-minded people in a safe, welcoming space. * **Gain Clarity & Perspective** – Step outside daily routines and into a space designed for personal growth and reflection. ## **The Ideal Group Leader** The ideal group leader * Has a born-in passion for mental health, movement, connecting with nature and building community. * Has 5 extra hours per week to dedicate to a meaningful cause for at least one year. Yes, you can leave any organization at any time and we can also ask you to leave, but we are building with legacy in mind and we need people who can commit and be ALL IN on this mission to build with us. * Is independently financially stable with the ability to volunteer with no expectation of pay. This is a deeply beautiful journey of service that all participants commit to at Speak Your Mind. * An ability to manage groups with high emotional intelligence and desire for human connection. * An ability to self-motivate and market/promote their group on Facebook and other social platforms. * Nature informed therapy or clinical therapists/psychologists a plus. ## **Our Impact**  Since launching, we have helped thousands find support, connection, and healing through our Outdoor Movement Groups. 100% of participants surveyed have reported: * A noticeable improvement in mental clarity and emotional well-being. * An increase in social connection and a sense of belonging. * Said they would return again. We believe mental health should be accessible, community-driven, and rooted in nature. Join us and take the first step toward a more connected, grounded, and supported version of yourself. ### **Why Our Groups are Donation-Based** Our Outdoor Movement Groups are made possible through a donation-based model. This approach allows us to keep our events accessible to everyone, regardless of financial circumstances, while also ensuring that we can continue expanding our reach. It’s a great way to pay it forward and support the growth of this beautiful mission! Every contribution helps us: * **Cover Essential Costs** – Donations allow us to pay essential legal, marketing, insurance, and admin costs as well as nourish the important people who run the organization. * **Grow Our Mission** – With your support, we can bring these healing experiences to thousands more people in the future and execute our long term plan to expand across the USA, affecting up to 500,000 people per year. By choosing to contribute, you’re not just leading an event—you’re helping build a mental health movement that supports long-term well-being and connection for all during a severe mental health epidemic. ## **Come Join Us!** We’d love to have you be part of this growing community of people prioritizing their mental health, movement, and connection. 🔹 **Visit Our Website to Learn More:** https://speakyourmind.men/joinusoutside 🔹 **Apply Here to Lead Your Own Group!** – https://form.jotform.com/taketimespeakyourmind/sym-group-leader-application 🔹 **Support the mission**: If you resonate with the mission and want to support, feel free to join a group before applying or donate to help us reach our goals to help more people! You can donate here: https://secure.givelively.org/donate/angels-for-angels/speak-your-mind Please text Mario with any questions: (808) 855-8831