Volunteering and supporting your community is part of what it means to be an active citizen, and interns at the Obama for America headquarters in Chicago have been getting some firsthand experience doing just that.

After his election in 2008, President Obama, along with his family, volunteered at St. Columbanus. Now, all OFA interns in Chicago follow their example by spending one Friday afternoon at the St. Columbanus Food Pantry on the south side of Chicago preparing bags of food to be distributed to local residents in need.

Last week, one group of OFA interns decided to take their service one step further, by injecting some Obama team spirit (and goodies) into the process. As a special treat for recipients, intern volunteers baked hundreds of White & Dark Chocolate Chip cookies – the Obama family favorite recently entered into Family Circle magazine’s Presidential Cookie Contest – and packaged them into bags of food for those in need.

“The St. Columbanus Food Pantry is a really fantastic place that does so much good for the community,” said Lucy S, an intern for the Obama campaign. “We spent the afternoon there, bagging food and talking with the pantry’s director, Laverne. She told us how important it is to volunteer for a cause that really means something to you. It was such a great experience, and really meaningful to be able to help out at an organization that is so close to the President and First Lady’s hearts.”

Lucy and other passionate young Americans across the country are spending their summers working to re-elect President Obama and volunteer in their communities at the same time. Will you join them?

VOLUNTEER