Last Night at Center Grove UMC

I attended Mass this morning at the United Methodist Church, and the youth put together the service, which was really upbeat, enlightening, and full of great insight to what the youth group has to offer. The service was full of smiles and music and praying, and it was a really uplifting ceremony.

I later attended the youth group session tonight, and we were joined by two other churches, Sherill and Key West. It was really nice to get to meet some of the new youth that came to our youth group to visit, and we all worked together in getting to know one another better. The youth session was focused on self-esteem, how each of us views ourselves, and how we can make things better if we do not have good self -confidence. We talked about certain factors and feelings that make us feel the way we do about ourselves, and how we see ourselves in relation to strength. We discussed every day events that may bring us down and keep us in the shadows of others, and it was interesing to her individual stories from the youth about times when they were looked down upon by others, or treated badly when they shouldn't have been.

After the discussion we all shared in pointing out positive things about one another, and it was clear to see that it lifted some of the youth up, with smiles and laughter. We all adapted really well to being open and honest with one another, and it was a very positive action that the leader took in addressing self-esteem issues in young teens today. We took time to pray for those who feel inferior to others, and for those who feel that they will always be below others no matter what. It was a touchy discussion because it was clear that it made some of the youth uncomfortable at first, but once people started sharing, it was as if the youth realized that most everyone falls victim to self-esteem issues.

After our discussion we got together to pray, and to offer up ourselves and others to the lord. We asked that the lord watch over every individual in spite of the Thanksgiving holiday, and that traveling goes safe, the weather is fair, and that those who cannot be with their families on this holiday know that they are in our prayers. We then discussed the Thanksgiving dinner we will be serving down at the Hope House in Dubuque on Tuesday night. The youth seemed very enthused by our actions to help the less fortunate during the holiday, and many of them volunteered to go down to the Hope House and serve the Thanksgiving dinner with me and the leaders.

It was sad that this was our last night together as a group. I really learned a lot from the youth group, and the leaders as well. I can honestly say that gathering each week, talking, and sharing things about our lives really helped me to become more open, less shy, and a more positive person. I know that I will keep in contact with the youth group at UMC because I became great friends with some of the members, and they have been there for me in times of need as well. This service learning project was a great experience, and if I could do it over again, there would be no doubt that I would choose to go back to the Center Grove UMC.

Last Day at St. Vincent De Paul

When Dustin and I got there, the lady who was working knew exactly what we were they for this time, but that didn't really matter because they guy who told us what to do last time was right out on the store floor and guided us to the back part of the store. When he led us back this time, we started to do what we did last time, taking things out on to the store floor from the back room. After we moved everything that needed to be moved, he had us sweep the floors of the back room like last time. Then he sent us out to set up some TVs to play the movie "The Lion King." I remember having an old TV in my basement and having to set the color and contrast ratios on it. This apparently came in handy when we found a TV where all the colors were screwed up on it. I fiddled around with it for about 5 minutes and got the problem solved.
Eventually, the guy who gave us our things to do had left the building for a bit, so we were directed by some other people to do some more work. Somewhere in this time, Dustin and I helped load a piece of furniture into a guy's car. He seemed really happy that it fit in without having to have the back hatch of his car have to hang open. Apparently he was going on a trip and didn't want to have to take this piece of furniture home first.
After about half our time working there had past, Dustin and I were assigned to sort clothes. It was pretty simple. All we had to do was sort the summer clothes from the winter clothes, and throw out all the bad clothes. Dustin and I sorted clothes and talked for what was the rest of the day. The only thing that happened other than that, was when some other employees left and I changed the radio station to a different one because I couldn't stand the music that was on it, I'm more of a classic to late 80's rock guy myself.
That pretty much sums up what happened.

2nd trip to St. Vincent De Paul

The second time I went, I was with Paul. Other than a set of new faces to meet, it was similar work. We moved heavy items out to the sales floor, swept, and helped carry heavy donations inside. This time there were a lot of people bringing in things to donate, which is nice to see. We also sorted clothes, which was something new. It was simply a matter of sifting through the bags of donated clothing, folding the good articles and disposing of the ones unfit to sell.
On one occasion, a man needed us to carry a piece of furniture to his car and help him load it in. It was a small car, but we managed to fit it in. The man was very grateful for our help, even though I didn't think what we did was that big of a deal. Then again, I'm used to my old job at Target where I had to fit large purchases into people's cars without any thanks. That man's appreciation was quite lifting and it stuck with me as motivation to continue working.
When our time was up, we went to talk to the man nicknamed Lonely to see if he needed us for anything else. He just joked with us and thanked us for our help. As we walked with him, one of the other volunteers started to smoke in the warehouse. Lonely joked by acting as if we were bouncers and told us to throw him out. His sense of joking around with us made me feel as if I was an actual part of the community and not just a visitor. It's these little things that I know will stick with me.

"After" Volunteering

Even though this experience has come to an end as far as this course is concerned, I will continue to tutor. Therefore, my final reflection is a bit premature, but here it is at this point, reflecting back on the hours I have volunteered thus far. The most positive part of this experience for me was watching/listening to the people I had tutored apply what we had discussed. I was thrilled to watch Max make the connection between our discussion of pumpkins to the pumpkin cake he was eating. I felt blessed being able to provide the people I worked with tools or phrases to help them order food or talk to a taxi...daily tasks that we take for granted that they were unable to communicate before coming to Presentation Lanter Center. Leaving the center each day knowing that the people I worked with weren't going to struggle surviving in an English-speaking country was great, and the most positive thing for me was knowing that I had helped them accomplish that. The most difficult part of the experience was developing methods to tutor people my age or older who were of the same intelligence as me without feeling like I was embarrassing or insulting them. My first day tutoring was probably the hardest only because it was new to me. Another difficult task was trying to translate using pictures and expressions when the picturebook wasn't sufficient. Overall though, this experience was not too difficult because the volunteers, Sr. Corine, and all the students had such great personalities and were so optimistic.

Tutoring Days 2 and 3

On Wednesday November 14th and Thursday November 15th I continued tutoring at Presentation Lantern. Although they were my 3rd and 4th visits to the center, my first day there was strictly cleaning, so these were my second and third times tutoring. My second day as a tutor I walked into the classroom and saw smiling faces of a half-dozen tutors and students. These students varied in ages, and were from all sorts of different countries. I was paired up with Norma, a middle-aged woman from South America who speaks limited English. She came to Dubuque with four sisters and a brother and all of their children. Norma has a son and is expecting another child. All of this she communicated to me through pictures and broken sentences. Part of the mission of Presentation Lantern Center is to provide hospitality, so not only do I teach English but I also get to engage in meaningful conversation with people there and learn about their lives. We develop relationships that are more like friendships than the strict student-teacher relationships of many tutoring organizations. The students are entirely voluntary, and we don't have expectations as to how far they need to advance day-to-day, so it is a very stress-free environment. Another wonderful aspect of the center is that students are allowed to bring their children with them. There is a section of the classroom that is carpeted and overflowing with toys to keep the children occupied while still in view of their parent(s). Sometimes I play with the children during our break. There is a big dollhouse that all the little girls enjoy. I find it amazing how the language barrier doesn't stop the children from playing together! Friendships are valued at the center. I have sampled some authentic Japanese teas that some of the women brought to America with them. It truly is a rewarding place to be. While there, I'm reminded of the work I do with special needs students during the summer, and I recall on methods that worked with them that I can try to express points to the new students. On Thursday I had a very difficult time explaining to Norma the difference between "how much" and "how many" and also that "should not" and "shouldn't" mean the same thing. Fortunately we found a way for her to understand, and she was excited to go to the grocery store to buy food! Even though Thursday was my last day of volunteering for this class, I will continue to tutor there because I have fallen in love with the center and the people there!

My Service Learning

Before I Volunteered
I didn't quite know what to expect before I went to volunteer at the Catholic Worker Farm In Key West. I was nervous because I am not used to working for people I do not really know, but at the same time I was at ease because I went with somebody I knew. I didn't know what I would be doing but since I had lived on a farm for 18+ years I figured it wouldn't be that hard. I didn't really have any goals other than to get acquainted with the people I was working for and to do what was asked of me.

During Volunteering
Both times I went to volunteer I went with Jenny. Both times we were there we weeded gardens. The first time I weeded a potato garden while Jenny picked peppers and eggplants. I was having fun and getting carried away with he potato fork and accidentally stabbed it into my shoe. It barley missed my toes but we had a good laugh about it. After we were done weeding the first time we went inside to ask her questions. The second time we weeded out a garden that had run down plats because they had been frosted on. Jenny pulled some of the wrong things and I felt bad for the lady and Jenny, but the lady didn't seem upset. We then pulled old broccoli plants. After we picked them off the garden we put old hay down to cover the ground. We went inside for some cider, and then we came back out to pick up chickens eggs. After that there wasn't much left to do so we left. At first my feelings toward this project were like I was too busy. I had so much going on but when I was actually there I realized that these people have busy lives sometimes too and they still have to make time to get it done. I ended up having fun while I was working. I had the most fun when the kids were outside helping. They made things fun. And when we told them something they listened. They lady we worked for, Mary Moody, was very nice. She made us feel welcomed and invited us into her house many times. Her faith is very valuable to her. I found this out because she is very involved in her work. She was talking about the Hope House often and the other programs they are involved with.

After Volunteering
The most positive part of my experience was knowing that I had helped people. Some I knew better than others. But In a way I had helped the less fortunate, even though I didn't directly help them. I helped people that help the poor. There wasn't really a hard part about volunteering. I think maybe the hardest part was finding the time to go volunteer. I have just been so busy but if you truly want to accomplish something you will set your mind to it and achieve it.

Mt. Carmel

Cleaning Floor at St. Vincent DePaul Fourth/Last Experience

On November 10, 2007, I did my fourth service learning project in the afternoon at St. Vincent DePaul. My job was to go around picking up all the large items on the floor of the store that would that the vacuum cleaner would not be able to be pick up. This included pealing price-tag stickers off the floor. I realized that since this is a non-profit organization, they do not spend a lot of money on fancy cleaning equipment that other stores would. The people are dedicated to providing as much money to charities as they can, even if this means doing some extra work, such as visually sweeping the store floor for large items and price tags.

Over the course of my service learning, I began to wonder why people were drawn to apply to work here. I realized that I actually enjoyed working with the other workers and that I enjoyed the slower paced environment. I also got a chance to ask the manager, Kirk, why he decided to work here. He said that it was because he liked helping people. I can completely understand this. On my first service learning experience at St. Vincent DePaul, I noticed how all the workers in the store knew many of the regular customers by name. In this non-profit business, there is a lot of emphasis put on the interaction with people, and the workers could actually see their work helping others in the community.

The most positive part of this experience was seeing how this place directly helped people in need by providing necessities at a very low price and indirectly via their donations of profit to charities. Another positive part of this experience was having a low-paced work environment that actually forced me to relax and forget about all the chaos going on in my academic life right now. The hardest part of my experience was finding the time to actually do the service learning. The hours listed in the syllabus were incorrect (I was hoping to go there at 7 on weekdays and leave at 9 to get back for my 10am classes, but they did not actually open until 9am which does not give me enough time to get back for class). Since I have class and required activities from 9/10am to 7/9pm every weekday with no or very small breaks between them, all the hours that they were open on weekdays were out of the question. That left Saturdays (they were not open on Sundays), which in my major are rarely considered a day off, because recitals, concerts, work, and other required activities often invade Saturdays and Sundays. I was lucky to find one no-school day Friday when I was able to spend a significant amount of time at St. Vincent DePaul, and one Saturday when I was free to finish up my service learning. Sadly enough, these were the only two times I did not have other required obligations while St. Vincent DePaul was open. I realize that this project was supposed to span more than a two day time span, but I was lucky enough that my schedule even allowed to do any of the service learning, and I was actually able to complete the 10 hours. Also, I went into each service learning experience looking to be enlightened in more than one way, as if each 2 hour time period was a new experience.

~Kristin P.

Shelving Items at St. Vincent DePaul Third Experience

On November 10, 2007, I did my third service learning project in the morning at St. Vincent DePaul. This time, I was in charge of bringing a variety of miscellaneous items from the warehouse, where they had been priced, into the store where they could be sold. I worked with a variety of items such as decorations, kitchen necessities, vases, Christmas items, computer materials, children’s toys, and crafts. I had to search around for the right shelves to put them on. The store was quite busy with customers on this day, and I always felt that I was getting in the way of the customers.

One thing that I really began to realize during this time at St. Vincent DePaul was how much people really do need and want all the things that others no longer need or use. It seemed that every time I put down several items on a shelf, many of them would be gone five minutes later when I came to put more items in that aisle. As I put down many things, I thought to myself, “Why do they even bother putting this out? This isn’t worth buying.” Then, to my disbelief, those items would be gone next time I came down the aisle. This reminded me all the random things that would not sell at our garage sales that my family would take down to a similar store in the area where I grew up. I always knew that it was good to donate our used things, but I never realized how many people need them and will buy them at low prices.

~Kristin P.

Tutoring at Presentation Lantern

On Wednesday Nov. 7th I helped clean and organize the rooms in Presentation Lantern. Presentation Lantern is a place where volunteer tutors help teach English to people who have come to Iowa from other countries who speak little or no English. I straightened some of the shelves and put objects away. Sr. Corine had other small tasks planned for me, but they were running short on tutors so she asked if I'd be willing to tutor instead of clean. The time spent at Presentation Lantern that day flew by. I was asked to tutor Max, who spoke Chinese and had arrived in America two weeks prior to our first meeting. He was from Taiwan and spoke a limited amount of English. At first I was nervous, because I had never tutored someone who was older than me, and I was afraid that he would think I wasn't suited to be his tutor. However, Max was very eager to learn. He told me, in broken English, that he wanted to learn conversations. I used a Chinese/English picturebook to teach him vocabulary. I would point to the word, say it, and then he would repeat the word, trying to match my pronunciation. The translation was printed below in Chinese, and there was a picture of the object to reaffirm what it meant. After the first five minutes, I was completely at ease. We began engaging in broken conversation, resorting to a white board and marker to draw what we both meant when the picturebook wasn't enough. We came to the "holidays" page, and we flew through New Year's and Halloween. However, Thanksgiving was difficult to explain to Max because it's strictly an American holiday. I used a globe to communicate "Europe" and "ocean" and the travel of the pilgrims. I taught Max all about Thanksgiving and the pilgrims and how we feast and the foods that we eat. I was so proud when I saw the light in Max's eyes showing when he finally understood what was being said. During this session, I had spoken of pumpkin pie, which took me quite some time to explain what a pumpkin was, and even harder to explain pie. When we took a break an hour later, it just so happened that there was pumpkin cake being served! One of the volunteers offered some pumpkin cake to Max, and he got a huge grin on his face and looked at me and said "PUMPKIN!" I was overjoyed! I was overcome with a sense of accomplishment and also of self-worth. I had taught Max something helpful! He used the conversation skills we had practiced earlier to say "yes please" and "thank you." On Wednesdays, the building is supposed to close at 3pm, but we were so caught up in our conversations and the company of one another and learning that we didn't notice the clock until 3:30pm! I helped clean up and unplug everything before leaving. While driving home, I couldn't stop smiling. I had a very rewarding day and couldn't wait to go back!

3rd Day

Wednesday was my last day of doing volunteer work. Even though I complete my hours I am planning to keep going some times to Sr. Vincent de Paul and help around a little bit more. Also I am planning on encouraging my friends to buy and used items from this place instead of going to the pawn shop and buy their items.

This last day I was back again into the miscellaneous area. This time was slower than last time just because it was a Wednesday and the last time that I was working was a Saturday so everybody was off to do drop off.

I was classifying items by the ones that were good and the ones that were not buyable at all. This time I threw away some toys that I used to use when I was a kid. I felt so sad and so bad about that I was almost to the point to buy one, but I didn’t. The reason why I didn’t buy any item, it was because I help other poor people in my country by giving them those items that I don’t use, instead of selling them those items.

In St. Vincent de Paul I felt so pleased working there that it was unbelievable. The people were so nice to me and they didn’t over use their power over me by being a volunteer. Even their boss wanted me to work there, but I currently have a job. I told him: “Thank you, for the job offer, but I would rather come here time-to-time and help you whenever I can. This is because I currently have a job, but thank you again for the offer.”

This last day made me realize a lot of good thinking of why I do what I do to help others. And I don’t regret and don’t mind doing this type of service some other in the future.

Sinsinawa Mound

Friday was our last night volunteering at Sinsinawa. We raked, moved rocks, washed rocks, and chatted. Sister Sarah said her Miami trip was very good and busy - she learned much and met new people. She invited us to dinner and we were excited - last time we had a great experience eating with the sisters. When we were eating dinner, Sister Mary Owens announced that it was our last night and we were met with applause, which seems silly for our seemingly small contribution, but that is just the way these wonderful women are. They are incredibly appreciative - all the sisters were thanking us when they deserve the thanks - we were warmly welcomed into their community. It shows the wonderful character that they all have because women we had never been introduced to came up to us to sincerely thank us - they spread joy, love, and thanks to all. The entire night was rather bittersweet - I was so glad we could help them, but it was sad to think it was the last night. Sister Sarah and Sister Mary Owens invited us to come back to visit and to bring our families - Sister Sarah said we should come see the garden next fall, but I'm sure they will see me before then. They are an open, amazing community, one that I'm glad I could interact with and be part of - if only for a little while.