On October 6, I went with some members of
Stockton’s Animal Friendly Organization to volunteer at the Wetlands Institute
in Stone Harbor. The reason for our volunteering there was the Wetlands
Institute was having its Monarch Madness program; a children’s program they set
up every year around the time the monarch butterflies migration path from
Canada to Mexico reaches southern New Jersey. We arrived around ten in the
morning, where we were first taken to the children’s activities tables.  They had various arts and crafts tables set
up where children could color pictures, tie-dye, and make paper butterflies and
a table with butterfly bingo. We switched off working at the tables for about
three hours, but I did the butterfly bingo most of the time. The kids would get
a bingo card that had pictures of various butterfly species and they would put
a chip on the picture if it was called. My job was to be the bingo caller; I
would draw a card from a deck and call out what butterfly species appeared,
sometimes having to help out the kids find the picture on their card. At one in
the afternoon, we stopped working the tables to help with the diamond-back
terrapin release. An employee of the institute took us into the back and we were
given a bucket of turtles and we went down a nature trail with her and a group
of visitors to a boat dock. There, the kids were able to let the terrapins go
into the water. After watching about five terrapins swim away, we walked back
to the institute to continue helping by aiding in a monarch butterfly release.
There was a monarch butterfly expert there and she let us place identification
tags on a few butterflies and let them go. This was the last thing we did for
Monarch Madness, finally leaving around two. Volunteering at Monarch Madness
with the Animal Friendly Organization was an enriching experience for me. Even
though volunteering there was currently a onetime activity, I would definitely
consider volunteering at the Wetlands Institute at some time in the future.

When I arrived at the Performing Arts Center, I can honestly say that I had no idea what to expect from the Koresh dance group. I only chose to go to this show because my friend was going to it. What I did not expect was the explosion of culture that ensued. The Koresh dance company is a middle-eastern based dance group with a completely different style of dance than I have ever seen before. Instead of showing beauty, such as ballet dancers do, they showed strength and flexibility. At times their movements looked unnatural almost as if they were possessed. The sharp, staccato movements kept the audience guessing what was going to happen next. The movements were alien to me and I did not understand most of the beginning dances. Dancing, no matter what genre, however, was not meant to be understood, but to be enjoyed and experienced. A dance can tell a story of love, as in a few of the partner dances, a story of anger, as in the group dances with the ferocious music, or even a story of playfulness, as in the partner dance between the two girls. Once I let go and just watched not to understand, but to enjoy, I saw the beauty in the strength they were exhibiting.  There were lifts, legs kicked higher than eye level, isolations of body muscles that have taken years to perfect, and yet the group made it look simple. The dancers have incredible strength and control of their bodies, but yet are graceful when the choreography calls for it. They exhibited a range of different and ever more difficult steps in their choreography that opened the audience’s eyes to a new culture and a new style of dance. After seeing the different dance style, I was encouraged to be more open about new cultures. Experiencing the intensity and the passion from the range of different dancers, of all different races, made me realize that anyone can learn about and immerse themselves in a culture other than their own. I personally loved the show due to its oddity in my life. If I had known going in that the show was going to be middle-eastern style dancing, I probably would not have gone due to the fact that it was different, but now I am happy that I got to experience the dancer’s performance and learn from their example.

My first experience at Stockton’s Performing Arts Center was William Shakespeare’s “Much Ado About Nothing.” This comedy centered around the “love war” between Benedick and Beatrice, two people who proclaim their distaste for love, but who are secretly in love with each other. In addition, Benedick’s friend Claudio has fallen madly in love with hero, a sweet young girl. The play follows the developing relationship between these two couples, as well as Claudio’s brother Don John’s attempts to cause trouble between the lovers.  Though the play’s script was kept to Shakespeare’s original dialogue, the setting, props, and characters’ costumes were set in modern times. The play was held in the Experimental theater in the basement of Stockton’s PAC. The theater was small, and allowed the cast to interact with the audience, including wandering and hiding in the midst of the audience. Overall, the play was a lot of fun and kept the audience engaged and laughing frequently. The cast did a wonderful job of adopting the classic script to a modern set, and the performance overall was a great success!

On October 13^th my friends and I attended Stockton’s production of Much Ado About Nothing.  We walked into a small room with a set design that made you feel like you weren’t just viewing a play, you were in the play.  The audience was very close to the stage area and the seating was modeled to look like it was in a garden.  Occasionally, the actors went into the audience or interacted with the audience, which made me feel even more apart of the show.  The show was a Shakespearian play, but with a very modern take.  I was afraid this modern take would ruin the story of the show, but instead it made the show more relatable and enjoyable.  The police characters were modeled after the characters from the show Reno 911, which was very comical and emphasized the point of the characters more.  The police characters were intended to be comic relief and this proved that point even more so.  One of the main characters of the show, Beatrice, was absolutely perfect.  I have read the play and seen it before, but I have never seen anyone play the part as good as her.  She was extremely bitter and sarcastic, which is what Beatrice is supposed to be.  Between scenes modern music was played to move along the show during the breaks.  The modern music was known by the crowd so that added to the enjoyment because you had something to sing along to in between the breaks.  Also, the music, even though modern, always fit the scene that just happened, so it emphasized the play even more so.  Lastly, my favorite part of the show was that they changed Borachio character to a girl, which caused a lesbian relationship to happen during the show, which was a very nice modern take.  Overall, the play was excellent.  I will definitely see more plays here at Stockton.

On Wednesday October 22nd we reviewed the information that we found out about Pop Lloyd in our Life of the Mind class. We learned that he has his own field dedicated to him in Atlantic City which is very close to campus. He was an extremely good baseball player and batted .400 averages multiple times. Pop Lloyd was a highly recognized African American player in the Negro League. On Friday October 24th my Life of the Mind class met at the Performing Arts Center to listen to Roberto Clemente’s son Luis talk about his father. I usually do not like guest speakers because they bore me, but Luis’ story was extremely touching and he reminded us that even though his father was a pro baseball player he was still a person with a heart, emotions, and a family. He was not like the baseball players today that crave fame and money, but he was in the sport for “the love of the game”. He started his own chiropractic practice and he wanted to help people. He taught his sons to do what they loved regardless of how much it did or did not pay. Roberto seems like the kind of athlete that I would love to meet and spend a day with just to get to know him as a person. He was born in Puerto Rico and he made sure that he gave back to Puerto Rico by volunteering and donating baseball equipment to poorer nations in South America. Unfortunately he died in a plane crash on his way to an earthquake relief in Managua. This man ended up sacrificing his life for the charity work that he wanted to do. Luis carries out the same principles in life because he did play baseball at one point but now he goes around from place to place speaking about the difference his father made in the game of baseball and in people’s every day lives.

Alexis Lawless

Salvation Army

October 17, 2012

Circle K

Wednesday, October 17^th, was my first Salvation Army experience. The club I’m in, Circle K, goes every Wednesday. The Salvation Army is located in Atlantic City, NJ. Every Wednesday, a couple club members carpool to A.C. They go to Texas Avenue School, which is one of city’s many elementary schools. The club members help students, ranging from 5 to 12 year olds, with their homework after school from 4:00 PM to around 5:30 PM.

The first thing I noticed when I got out of the car in front of the school was how dangerous and sketchy of an area the school was in. The classroom wasn’t all that different. There were three out-of-date computers in the class I was in. Also, it looked like a class I had when I was in first grade. That right there told me that they haven’t renovated the school at all. There were also very few actual desks and two tables for the rest of the kids to sit at. The kids themselves were out of control because the teachers were not authoritative whatsoever.

After I witnessed this, the teacher had the kids that didn’t have homework play in the gymnasium. It was very old and looked like it hadn’t been cleaned in weeks. The teacher threw the kids a football and let them be. I decided to play with them and I started to get to know these kids on a different level. They were happy and having a good time. They were also extremely happy to see me and the other club members, even though they have never met us before. It honestly made me blush.

Once I had enough of running around, I decided to go next door and help the kids that did have homework. While doing so, I met two hilarious 4^th graders who shocked me with their brilliance. I also talked about sports and music with them, and their knowledge of both made my day.

Before we left, I witnessed two things no child should have to go through or do. The first was seeing a child get yelled at by a teacher for his parent(s) being late to pick him up. The second was as I was walking to the car outside, I saw a group of 4 or 5 students walking home in that same dangerous area I mentioned above. They were alone.

Growing up in a place like Atlantic City as a child cannot be easy. I didn’t realize this until I witnessed it first-hand. I feared for those children’s lives that had to walk home alone at 6:00 PM in the area we were in. I probably wouldn’t have even done that at the age I am now.

After my first Salvation Army experience, I realized how lucky I am to have grown up in the school district that I did, which is Egg Harbor Township. It’s not fair that these young kids have to live and learn in a place that doesn’t even have up-to-date computers or a classroom that is large enough to fit them all. One thing I was very impressed with is how happy-go-lucky all the children were. I know kids that complain about school every day that have some of the most beautiful classrooms and amazing teachers. I know I did, and I am never going to take my education for granted ever again.

I will continue to go to the Salvation Army as many Wednesdays as I can to be with these kids, either it be playing sports with them or helping with homework. While I am teaching them how to solve math equations and fix sentences, they are helping me become a more aware individual and teaching me to be content with all the gifts I do have in my life.

The first event that I attended was Stockton’s Day of Service on September 10^th.  As an honors student, I was expected to show up and put in all my effort, but I wasn’t sure what exactly I was going to be asked to do.

When I showed up at the Campus Center to start the day, I was told I would help out with Books Without Borders. Eventually though, I volunteered to help with building a few nests for wild ospreys, as no one had signed up for that, and they needed volunteers. The overall project was made a little harder by the fact that I had a fractured finger, but I worked through it anyway.

Overall, the project was a lot of fun! The project’s leader divided us into groups to build three separate nests; one nest would be stacked on a tall post , and the other two would be attached to buildings. It was a fun experience to use power tools and measure out exact lengths for the wood. The work was definitely demanding, but we managed to put together three good-looking nests! After we put one of the nests on the post, everyone got to sign it and date it for memory’s sake.

The day as a whole was a lot of fun. It felt really good to know that the project I was working on would help keep an important species alive and thriving, as well as provide more of a chance for the species’ future. As a biology mature, I love helping out with environmental services, so building the nests seemed perfect for me. The Day of Service seemed like a lot of fun no matter what event people participated in, and I would highly recommend it to anyone thinking of participating!

On Friday October 14, 2011, the PAC Theater held a symposium in honor of Roberto Clemente. The speaker that came and shared his knowledge and past experiences with Clemente was Luis Mayoral. He spoke of his personal relationship with Clemente, having first seen him tying his spikes at a game. Mayoral still specifically remembers the cologne that Clemente used to wear. Later, Mayoral was privileged to actually meet with Clemente at his home, and have a long conversation with him. As the years went by, the two became close friends, allowing Mayoral to have all the information that he shared at the PAC.
Luis Mayoral spoke of how much of a caring and good person Clemente was. While Clemente had pride for his country, he also instilled a pride for the Puerto Ricans that looked up to him. Along with inspiring his own people, Mayoral told us of how Clemente was greatly respectful towards his fans. He always showed love for the youth, which was one inspiration for his Sports Center. Clemente also always had time for fans during the games, never failing to give them attention.
Besides being an icon, Clemente was also greatly involved with helping those less fortunate, specifically earthquake victims of Nicaragua. Clemente spent a good deal of time raising goods to send over to the distraught nation in hopes of helping them to recover. When he heard that the shipments were being taken by the local military and sold to the victims instead, he decided to accompany the next shipment. During this flight, the plane banked too far left and crashed into the Atlantic Ocean; his body was never found.
While Clemente is remembered for his induction into the Hall of Fame, his tragic death, and the game, this was not what he wanted to be remembered for. Clemente wanted to be remembered as a ball player who gave all that he had to give.

Here at Stockton we had a blood drive on September 21^st and 22^nd.  Sign up tables were set up by the Honors Program in the Campus Center to find anyone willing to donate.  My friends and I were suppose to run one of these sign up tables the day before the blood drive, but the sign up sheets were misplaced and unfortunately we could not run the table. But the minute I saw one of these sign up tables I had to sign up.  I have given blood twice before and I try to give blood whenever the opportunity arises because it is something so easy to give; we constantly are creating more and more blood in our bodies.  Some people do not have this luxury and need more blood.  The blood drive here at Stockton was the best one I have been to so far.  It was fairly quick with not much waiting around in between steps.  The nurses were very nice and took interest in me as a person, which was very comforting because then I didn’t feel like just another pint of blood; I was also a person.  The needle was slightly painful but it was over before I knew it.  They offered pretzels, juice, and water afterwards to the donors to prevent anyone from getting lightheaded.  It overall was a really great experience even with technically losing a part of my body.  I hear there will be another blood drive in the spring and I encourage anyone who can donate to do so.  I know for certain I will be there.