On Thursday, September 25, renowned author of Orphan Train Christina Baker Kline came to visit us at the Performing Arts Center for the 2014 freshman convocation! This was perhaps one of the most unique opportunities I had been offered while at Stockton, so of course I was going to go to show support. After all, we had  just finished reading her novel Orphan Train in our class so it was only appropriate that we went and learned as much about the book as possible. When we first arrived to the theatre, it was quite empty…I think honors kids have a knack for showing up super early to events for some reason. Nevertheless, we got the best seats in the house, and we were all super excited for the presentation. After discussing the novel meticulously in seminar, it would be interesting to get the authors opinion of her work for a change. Time passed and the room quickly filled…almost every seat was occupied, full house! And then the guest of honor appeared, and the room quickly fell silent, as she began by putting the audience in her character’s shoes. She made it a comfortable environment for learning about the research and history behind her book, and certain ideas which lead to key instances in the book. After her presentation, she offered a question and answer session to which she answered many outstanding questions, and kept things lively among the audience. After that even, she was gracious enough to hold a book signing event, but the line was too long and I had class so I up and left. I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t stay the entire time though. I saw many people get up and walk out right in the middle of her presentation, which I thought to be quite rude if I do say so. I can understand that people have classes and such but still…if someone makes the time to come out and talk to you, the least you can do is be respectful and listen attentively.

On August 26th, most freshmen were at home preparing themselves for the rapidly approaching semester. I, however, was smack dab in the middle of the forest at Camp Ockanickon, Medford, NJ, preparing for an incredible experience.

SOAR stands for Stockton Outdoor Adventure Retreat, and I must say, that’s exactly what it was. We started off the trip by splitting off into various “tribes” of different colors, and immediately began ice breakers to become acquainted with our team. Shortly thereafter, we loaded each tribe into separate school busses and headed for the retreat. I must say, I wasn’t expecting much from the bus ride…but it ended up being one of the best parts of the trip. Barely any of us knew each other at that point, so it was pretty interesting trying to learn so many people’s names and backgrounds in such a short amount of time. When we finally got to the camp itself, that’s when I knew it would be a great time. TALONS, or The Activity Leaders of New Students, immediately broke into groups and began playing wacky ice breaker games. Once people realized that nobody there was going to judge them, more and more people participated and made these games worth the while. After the first day, pretty much everyone on yellow tribe (the best tribe in the world) knew each other’s names, and we already had established unbreakable friendships.

The next few days were loaded with various bonding activities such as rope courses and rock walls, great food prepared by the amazing camp chefs, and memories that none of us will ever forget. While I’m not allowed back at SOAR as a camper since its freshmen only, you can bet your bottom dollar I will do everything possible to be a TALON and follow in their footsteps.

On September 6, 2014, I participated in Stockton’s Day of Service, in which various organizations gathered and offered multiple volunteer tasks to hundreds of people. It was a great chance to get out and see what actually needed help around the community and on the campus itself.

Walking around the main room, we had about 8 people in our group, and for some reason none of us wanted to separate, so we found an empty table with a sign that read “Water Watch”. At first, I thought we might go to the water plant of Atlantic County and see some internal procedures…but I was far off. Instead, this was an organization that focused on keeping Stockton’s fine campus clean of litter and pollution. Regardless, this was bound to be a productive day. But first things first… coffee!

Once we were divided into groups, the work commenced. We were handed a nice pair of work gloves, trash bags, and luckily I got the Grabber-Thing-A-Ma-Jig that picks up trash with the squeeze of a trigger. (I must tell you, I got very proficient with that tool…I could snipe a piece of trash from a good 4 feet away, and it was very satisfying). Once the equipment was distributed, we walked outside through Stockton’s silver arches and then we realized an inevitable obstacle…the heat. It was 80 degrees and rising, and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Time to break out the water bottles!

As far as the trash collection goes, it was a very long, hot, and overall very rewarding process. With each individual cigarette butt or gum wrapper I picked up, I felt like the Earth was already a significantly amount cleaner. Even though that’s not the reality, it is nice to think that if everybody reduced their litter and picked up after other delinquents, the environment would thrive exponentially better. I truly felt like as a whole, the people who volunteered their time that day made a significant difference to themselves, the campus, and the community. I plan on attending this event for many years to come, and I urge others to do the same…every little effort counts in the grand scheme of things.