Myrial Holbrook

I’m really not a festival person. I’m not a huge fan of heat, crowds, and loud music, so I was a little worried about manning the booth at the Baltimore Veg Fest this past Saturday. I came into it completely cold—I had just arrived from Columbus, Ohio, and it was my first official day as a VRG intern. But all my anxieties soon disappeared—I actually really enjoyed the experience and wouldn’t have changed a thing about it. Equipped with an array of VRG brochures, handouts, magazines, and books, I helped Nina and the other interns reach out to an incredibly diverse range of people. I experienced the impact of VRG on the community firsthand and maybe even contributed (slightly) to this impact. I shared my personal experience as a vegetarian with interested visitors and listened to the testimonies (and struggles) of many vegans and vegetarians.

VRG Interns, Myrial Holbrook (left) and Navaal Mahdi (right) hand out copies of The Vegetarian Journal at at Baltimore VegFest 2015.

Some people had been vegetarians all their life; others were fresh converts only a week into their new diet. All readily picked up our free VRG magazines and brochures (the coloring books, however, proved most popular). People got excited to learn about healthy vegan recipes and discuss the veg life. Even if they didn’t sign up for the VRG mailing list or become a member, it was rewarding to see that the vegetarian lifestyle is alive, well, and growing. One woman talked about her initiatives in elementary schools to promote vegetarianism and animal rights with picture books and lesson plans; a man told us how thankful he was for VRG because of its credible, reliable nutrition resources; many other people approached us and asked how they could volunteer in any way, shape, or form.

The festival was definitely hot and loud, but it was worth it. I sampled vegan treats, found new recipes, watched cooking tutorials, met with other interns, and, most importantly, I experienced the growing wave of enthusiasm for the veg movement. Witnessing this eagerness from the community inspires me to keep striving for the vegetarian cause, for it is this small extra effort from each of us that will make the biggest difference in the world.

For more information about internships with The Vegetarian Resource Group, see: http://www.vrg.org/student/