For the eleventh annual Day of Service I had every intention of joining the Galloway Thrift Shop group. I wanted to do a simple project that took place inside to shelter me from the ninety degree weather. When it was time to go to the table of the group we wanted to work with another student took the remaining position. I then went to the group my friend signed up for, the Eastern Service Workers Association. I asked my group leader, Kiyle, what activities we would be doing. He told me that we would be going from door to door in the desolate areas of Atlantic City talking to those in need. This was exactly what I did not want to do so, needless to say, I was very unhappy.
After a fifteen minute ride to our location we were given pitches to say to the people that actually opened their doors. Our main goal was to notify them of the resources available to them and their family if they became a member of the ESWA. They could receive clothing, food, shelter, legal representation, and medical care for a voluntary due of $0.62 a month. We encountered many types of people while on our trek. Some people refused to open their door, others seemed utterly uninterested, but most had a gaze of hope when we spoke about the help available to them.
Recently, four casinos in Atlantic City have closed, leaving thousands of people unemployed. This, with the lingering effects of Hurricane Sandy, caused a lot of the residents to feel helpless and lost. One of the people we spoke to was a homeless man on a bike, yet we saw at least two abandoned houses on every street. Another woman we interviewed had two young children and little food in her refrigerator. It was horrifying to see the way some people lived, but it felt amazing to be able to provide a glimmer of hope.
On our way back to the college we had a reflection session and the first topic Kiyle brought up was whether or not anyone has experienced this kind of poverty before. I spoke up and told my story of how I was homeless twice in my high school years and went to bed hungry more nights than I can count. I can relate to the way most of those people lived. Between my brother’s murder and my unstable living conditions it was hard for my family to get by. We had no knowledge of the resources available to us, so we had to rely on ourselves to make it. It was nice to be on the other side of the door.
I started my Day of Service project with grief and regret. After walking around for about an hour in the heat, rejection after rejection, I was losing interest in the project as a whole. Then, after signing up a few members and hearing the stories of the residents, I realized just how vital my being there with the ESWA was to their standard of living. Had we not knocked on their door and gave them flyers and information, they would not know how to help themselves out of the downward spiral of homelessness, unemployment, and hunger. I finished the day with happiness and gratification. It felt like I was giving back and helping those who aren’t strong minded enough to get through this alone, I could not have asked for a better organization to help.