At the crack of mid-morning on September 12, Stockton University opened its doors for the 2015 Fall Day of Service. The event, sponsored by the Office of Service Learning, kicked off with rousing speeches by President Kesselman and Todd Bernstein, as well as free doughnuts that seemed to be the main attraction for some volunteers. Then, divided into teams, everyone headed off for scheduled sessions.
Session 1, titled “Health and Wellness,” had a variety of options, ranging from suicide awareness to CPR training. I chose “Prescription Drugs,” which took place in a meeting room that completely ran out of chairs and almost ran out of floor space. Here a professor and a policeman delivered a presentation on drug abuse, focusing especially on heroin, which, due to its purity, accessibility, and cheapness, is spreading across New Jersey like a rash.
Session 2 focused on “Hunger and Homelessness.” In the CC Theatre, we learned about charitable organizations such as Covenant House, which provides shelter for homeless teenagers, and Books Without Borders, which provides donated volumes to impoverished countries. We were then instructed to organize leaning towers of paperbacks stacked at random on stage, and the assembly dissolved into a flurry of chaos, with dozens of students carrying, sorting, and packaging hundreds of novels, magazines, and textbooks.
Session 3, called “Civics,” took place in the C/D Atrium, and to my relief, the first order of business was devouring sandwiches. Smaller groups subsequently rotated through a dizzying assortment of activities which included discussing the rights of police, learning about a program that tutors prisoners, and taking a survey designed to expose how little I know about the Supreme Court/ Judicial Branch/ Government in general.
The final session, “Circle K & BWB,” took us back to the event room. Here we picked from a variety of crafts stations, and I spent the time making cards for terminally ill children with cancer. Decorating folded construction paper for a toddler who might not see next month was heartbreaking, but knowing that this simple gesture could spread a bit of sunshine into the life of someone who needs it was beyond rewarding. The day finished with a period of reflection.
Admittedly, I had been reluctant to roll out of bed on a rainy Saturday, but I left the Day of Service with new friends, an altered perspective, and a free t-shirt. That, to my mind, constitutes a day well spent.