This is the newsletter that Mailchimp censored. It’s those dangerous hanger-outers and do-gooders!!!
one love note for each year
thank you, hodg squad. I love you too.
Love is in the air.
Ok, maybe it’s more like tear gas or gunshot residue these days. Still – Valentine’s Day is on its way and though a capitalistic holiday devised to sell cards, candy and candles, we all could use a nudge towards love. Towards softness. Towards remember that love, love love, is still a thing.
Here are a few easy-peasy upcoming HODG actions to help us feel the love. (And a few actions that are less heart shaped, but still beautiful.)
Newsletter Index
1. Valentine Candy Grams Action: Thursday, Feb 12 (in person)
2. Cleaning Supplies of Love: Saturday, Feb 14 (donation)
3. A Valentine HODG Shabbat: Friday, Feb 13 (in person)
4. Love Notes: ongoing for the month of February
5. How do I Recycle for real? Tuesday, Feb 17 (virtual)
6. Get your HODG Whistle; Protect your neighbor: ongoing
7. Backyard Lunches: Sunday, Feb 8
8. HODG Provision Posse: Ongoing
9. Convo with Dr. Wendy Smith about Juvenile Crime: Wed, Feb 11 (zoom)
10. Candidate Meet & Greets:
-Katie Porter (Zoom): being rescheduled
-Xavier Becerra (Zoom): Wed, Feb 18
-Rev Rae Huang (Zoom): Thurs, Feb 26
1. Valentine Candy-Grams Action
These Valentine themed gift bags are for the immigrant FAMILIES + KIDS of No Estas noLA, a mutual aid group that serves 150 families some living in hiding, some "just" in poverty. This group was started by longtime HODG-partner Estephania Vazquez, who also serves as the community outreach facilitator at Alliance Middle School #4 (where we’ve also done a lot of projects!)
Estephania and her volunteers serve these families every week -- with home visits, food, supplies, care packages, etc. She has asked HODG to put together 50 candy-grams so these folks can feel the love too! This is the idea:
So here’s the plan: We need Candy-gram Buyers and Candy-gram Bag Makers.
For the buyers:
– below is a google doc listing items to fill these bags: chocolates, small toys, stuffed animals, etc. You know, Valentine stuff. Sign up to purchase some. (Please try not to use Amazon or Target! CVS, Walgreens, RiteAid, Home Goods all work)
– Have your items delivered or drop them off at my house:
HODG
153 S. Norton Ave
LA CA 90004
– Deadline is Feb 12. (If you can’t get it delivered by then, either drop it off personally, or forget it, and do one of the other actions.)
– For the makers: We are making the Candy-grams on Thursady Feb 12, 1pm - 4:30pm. At Norton. We will be using the stuff everyone – and maybe you too – have purchased.
VALENTINE CANDY-GRAMS
for Immigrant families + children
DEADLINE for purchasing items: Feb 11
Send to/Drop off at:
153 S. Norton Ave, LA 90004
Join Candy-Gram making
Thurs, Feb 12
1pm - 4:30pm
153 S. Norton Ave
2. CLEANING SUPPLIES of LOVE
There are safe houses in East LA that are full of immigrant families and children living in hiding. Some of these houses are over-run, squalid and… well, disgusting. In a couple weeks, VOLUNTEERS from one of our partner groups plan to go to a couple of these homes and clean/beautify them so the residents can live in more dignified conditions.
They've asked for cleaning supplies. Below is a link to a google doc listing those supplies. The doc also includes links to the products they have requested. They are from Amazon. We have also listed non-Amazon alternatives - Homegoods, CVS, Ralphs, Walgreens, Anawalts – and urge you to buy the items there.
The deadline for these cleaning supplies is Feb 14.
Cleaning Supplies of Love
to clean immigrant safe houses
Send/Drop off by
Sat Feb 14
Norton HQ
153 S. Norton Ave, LA 90004
3. A HODG/Valentine Shabbat
This one’s for us! Bring some food – and love – to share with this wonderful community!
And just a reminder: for us, Shabbat means “all are welcome!” You don’t need to be Jewish, or a believer in much, other than that breaking bread with others is a good, healthy thing to do.
Below is a link to a google doc where you can sign up to bring something to share.
** Oh, and if you can stay a bit later, please join the CLEAN UP CREW. Otherwise that’s left to just one or two of us, and that’s not how this works. Email hangoutdogood@gmail.com and let Pegah know you want to join the “clean up crew.”
A VALENTINE HODG SHABBAT
Friday, Feb 13
7pm
HODG HQ
153 S.Norton Ave, LA 90004
It's Potluck, so sign up to bring something to share!
4. LOVE NOTES to strangers in need
This month -- the month of love and Black history -- Chrysalis, which is an amazing organization devoted to supporting folks who are rebuilding their lives after homelessness, incarceration and other majoy life challenges, is sharing messages of encouragement with their clients, and they've asked HODG to help.
Here’s how it works. There is a link below that takes you to a form where you can write a quick love note. It can say whatever you want – whatever you might want to hear if the tables were turned. These messages will be posted in all of the Chrysalis centers for all of the clients and staff to see, and enjoy.
Thank you, Jamie, for very HODG action!
Love Notes to Strangers
write and send a quick note
letting someone know you care.
5. What’s Actually Recyclable? A zoom with a recycling expert.
I'm beyond thrilled about this one. Truly. I have approximately a zillion questions about recycling. And you do too — I know this because I’ve watched many of you stand frozen at the trash cans at my house, waste in hand, whispering: Is this recyclable? What about this cup? Will I not be invited back if I get this wrong?
Good news: no more squinting at tiny numbers on the bottom of plastic containers. No more recycling anxiety spirals.
Because — drumroll please — Kreigh Hampel is hopping on Zoom with us.
Kreigh spent 17 years with the City of Burbank as their Recycling Coordinator, which means he knows the difference between recyclable and wish-cycling, between helpful and actively ruining the whole system. He’s the person you want in your corner when you’re holding a greasy pizza box and feeling judged by society.
He’s going to tell us what is actually recycled, how to recycle in an apartment, and how to recycle better without losing our minds.
Come curious. Come confused. Come ready to finally stop apologizing to the blue bin.
** Please bring to the zoom ONE Item that causes you recycling anxiety. Kreigh will help you out.
*** Thank you Lisa R for making this happen!
What's Actually Recyclable:
A Zoom with recycling expert, Krigh Hampel.
Tues, Feb 17
7pm
All welcome!
Bring one item that causes
you severe recycling anxiety!
6. Get Your Whistles, Protect Each Other
"Form a Crowd, Stay Loud." That's a chant in MN. It's how they are keeping each other safe -- by being together, and being loud. For the loud part they are handing out hundreds of whistles. The intention is that you blow them to let your neighbors know that you-know-who is near.
Crazily enough, my sis bought 100 "HODG Whistles" as prizes for her booth at HODG's 2024 California State Fair. I don't remember what the whistles signified back then, but lucky for us, very few people took them which means, we have a slew of neon orange whistles embellished with an adorable HODG Logo.
They are on my porch right now. And they are yours for the taking. As long as you promise to use them to protect your neighbors!
HODG WHISTLES
"Form a crowd, stay loud. Protect each other"
On my porch
153 S. Norton Ave, 90004
Free for the taking until we run out
(which is gonna be a while since
there's easily 50-60 of them there)
FREE
** We are organizing our own rapid response training with IDEPSCA. It'll be a weekend day at Norton. Stay on the look out for the date.
Everything below has been mentioned in previous newsletters.
There are some changes -- in blue -- that we wanted you to see.
7. Backyard Lunch-Making
We have enough people for this Sunday. So if you haven't signed up, please make lunches at home this go around, and sign up quick next time! If you HAVE signed up -- don't blow us off, we are counting on ya!
8. Join HODG's Provisions Posse -- New Drop off in Mt. Washington!
Lots of families no longer feel safe going shopping. So a bunch of us have been shopping for them. Groceries. Cleaning Supplies. Diapers. Whatever they need. We are working with a handful of orgs and Churches that are in regular contact with the families. Here's how it works:
* The Churches give us the list of needs.
* We buy the stuff, and deliver it to a drop off location. We have a NEW drop off location in Mt Washinton. (we already have drop offs in Studio City, Hancock Park, Santa Monica, and more!) Email hangoutdogood@gmail.com for addresses.
* From the drop off location it's taken to one of our various partners, who get the items to the families in need. We are serving a second church in Koreatown, and another church in Boyle Heights. Email hangoutdogood@gmail.com for info.
Interested in joining this endeavor? Fantastic!! For the most recent list of provisions click below.
For safety reasons, we cannot list the drop-off locations here. Please email hangoutdogood@gmail.com for those.
9. ELECTIONS 2026: Meet The Candidates
Oh right. There's more than just carnage in our streets to contend with. There's a primary coming up too. On June 2nd.
Here's our plan:
First, we are going to meet the candidates. Or many of them. On Zoom -- to make it easier for us all. These zooms are NOT endorsements. They are NOT fundraisers. They are opportunities for us to meet the candidates, see what they're about. In some cases -- like with the Gubernatorial candidates, this might lead to helping you decide who you are going to vote for in June. In other casees, like with the congressional candidates, it will give you a better understanding of the candidates so you can knock on doors and make phone calls for them, which brings us to...
Second, after these meet n greets, we're going to get to work! That means knocking on doors, making phone calls, writing postcards and fundraising for various candidates. Much of this work we will do in partnership with Grassroots Dems.
UPCOMING Candidate Meet N Greets:
KATIE PORTER
(candidate for Governor)
RESCHEDULED
New date pending
(you can still REGISTER HERE and we will email you new date/time when we get it.)
XAVIER BECERRA
(candidate for Governor)
Wed, Feb 18
7pm
REGISTER HERE NOW
REV. RAE HUANG
(Candidate for LA Mayor)
Thurs, Feb 26
7pm
REGISTER HERE NOW
We have may other sessions in the planning stages including -- Karen Bass, Adam Miller, Eric Swalwell, etc. If you have a candidate you'd like us to meet -- or someone you have connections to -- please let us know.
10. Convo with Social Worker + Author Wendy Smith about Incarcerated Youth
Juvenile Crime doesn't just happen -- there is always a story behind it.
HODG's Youth Justice Team invites us all for a conversation with Dr. Wendy Smith, author of Before Their Crimes, a book inspired by interviews with individuals incarcerated for years after committing serious offenses as children.
Through their stories, Dr. Smith explains the connection between the toxic stress of early trauma, its effect on brain development, and on the likelihood of youth incarceration.
These stories also are so important because they remind us of the humanity and potential for healing in all of us.
Conversation with Dr. Wendy Smith,
author of Before Their Crimes
Wed, Feb 11
7:00pm
Zoom
Look at us!
Small but mighty!
One hour, before work.
Super easy. Super fun.
Come next time.
Or start your own.
happy valentines day.
I hope you all feel endlessly loved.
xoxo
J