The search for a new campus ministry director continues. Several good candidates have surfaced and we will commence with contacting references and interviews in the month of October. Every faculty member on campus is asked to provide service to the college and the community as part of their job responsibilities at Clarke. They are evaluated each year and asked to reflect on this contribution. Clarke is part of a wider community and it is a responsibility of each faculty member to build up this community.
Dean
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Tonight, Thursday October 4, 2007, I went to the Maria House again and we ate dinner and I was able to meet more residents that I had not met. They are just as nice as the ones I have already met. After dinner I sat with the kids and read books to the children while thier mothers did their chores. After that the house was quiet because the mothers took thier children to the "My little ponies" show at Five Flags. I could tell that not only were the children excited but also the mothers to be spending time with their kids and to see such big smiles on their faces. I was able to look over brochures and asked the staffmember there a few questions. The staff did not think that it had an active role in religion at this point but it was established based on faith. I found out in the brochure that the Maria House was founded by six Catholic women religious committees.
This week I went to the Dubuque Rescue Mission for the third time. One thing that I really noticed was how many people I started to recognize in just the couple weeks that I've been going. Also it's been kind of neat to see how they remember us from week to week and they always thank us when we leave. I've also noticed how everyone who comes to the rescue mission for dinner has a bond that they recoginize in each other. They have a real sense of community and you can really sense that in the atmosphere of the dining room. I really enjoy seeing them interact and I'm looking forward to getting to know everyone better in the weeks to come.
Last Thursday, was my third week of service. Sister Sarah met us at the door again and we quickly started again on the rock garden. It is coming along quite nicely, and we were able to finish a nice sized area of rock. We worked on the rocks that were on the bottom so al were quite dirty. We were able to get them all washed and then Sage and I helped Sister Sarah lay down the protective plastic to prevent the weeds from coming in, in hope that it will last longer. While I was helping I realized how many of the sisters appreciate what we are doing. Many walk by and given us a "thumb's up sign" or just smile, and some came in to thank us. I asked Sister Sarah if there were any events coming up for her and other sisters at the Mound. She told me about the Crop Walk which takes place in Dubuuqe and 75% of the proceeds go towards education and the other 25% goes towards shelters and PIN(people in need). She also told us about he upcoming travels to a conference in Alabama. Because of her trip we will be holding off on our service for a week or two, and return when she comes back. It's nice to get to know Sister Sarah and others at the Sinsinawa Mound.
On Thursday we went again to help Sister Sarah with her project. While chatting, Sister Sarah told us about the Crop Walk, an event Sinsinawa Mound and other surrounding places participate in to help raise money for the less fortunate. Of the fundings raised, 75 percent will go towards bettering education and 25 percent will be dispersed throughout the Dubuque community to shelters and PIN(People In Need). Sister Sarah spoke very highly of this activity, and rightfully so. Sinsinawa Mound is active in caring for the less fortunate and I hope to hear how well the Crop Walk turns out. Sister Sarah will be traveling to a conference in Alabama next week, so we will probably continue volunteering when she returns.
Tomorrow, October 12 I am going to the Catholic worker farm again. I plan to stay there for 4-5 hours to finish out my service project. I am excited to visit again to see Mary, Rick, the kids, and the young people from Hope house if they are there. I am going to write out some questions to ask Mary or Rick to help me later on as I write my map of spiritual values and my speech.
This entry is for week 7. I went to the Maria House on Weds. October 10, 2007. There were only two ladies there on this night and the person that was working told me that I could go home because there would be nothing for me to do there. I was disappointed but I was glad that I came. One of the ladies that lives there and I had gotten to know over the past few weeks would be moving out on Friday and I would not get antoher chance to wish her well. I could tell in her face that she was proud to be able to move on with her life and support her children. The Maria House's Goal is to "end homelessness in our community-one person or family at a time"(Michelle Brown-Maria House Executive Director) Not only do they try to end homelessness but they rebuild lives and I have been blessed to see this in action by meeting the women.
Last week and this week I have been meeting with my Supervisor in planning out a Thanksgiving dinner at the Hope House in Dubuque. We are taking on the action of feeding twenty-five people on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, and the youth of the Center Grove UMC are going to help prepare the whole meal, we will then deliver the meal and then serve the meal.
On Sunday of last week I met with the youth and Pastor of UMC for youth group. We had a guest, Pastor Charles, come and visit all the way from Camaroon, Africa. It was great to meet him and hear the stories of the work he has done to help others. He presented pictures to us of a school that he had built in Africa for less fortunate kids to go to. They go to the school during the day, for free, and on the way home the school supplies the children with fifty cents each, enough money for a meal when they return home from school. He spoke for a while, and it was all very interesting, seeing how much he cares about others, and to see just how motivated he is. It was a great experience to get to hear of the progress being made in other countries. We then joined in activities with eachother that showed how important it is to work together and build strengths among one another. It was a great night, I am looking forward to next week.
October 16, 2007 11:53 AM
On October 6th, I helped out with the Clarke Athletic Training Club on the Dubuque Weatherization Challenge. This is a day designated to help those in need (mostly the elderly) weatherize their house. This means that we helped them put plastic over their windows and calk their windows and doorways. I know that the CATS club is not exactly a faith community, but we do attend a Catholic college. We are a group of students who want to help those in need in anyway that we can. We help each other out when one of us needs help. The upperclassmen are there to help the underclassmen when they are unsure of themselves. When we were helping these people, they were so appreciative of our help. They also loved the fact that we came out to visit them and that we were interested in their stories about their lives. This made me feel so good. I know that CATS may not be the most faith based community, but we helped people, and I feel better about myself by helping, so I think that this was a very good service learning experience for me.
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