Category Archives: Service

Day of Service

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When I signed up for the Day of Service, back sometime in the summer, I thought there was going to be a few people and a lot of work.  Back at my high school that’s how it always was, and it was usually one big project that we all did together for the school, to keep it clean and pretty.  I’ll admit I did not look too much into it after I signed up, thinking it would be the same thing as high school.  Boy was I surprised when my friends and I showed up for it early that Saturday morning!  There were so many people there, I couldn’t even find the sign in table at first, and we all had to push through to sign in.  It was insane, and it made me so happy to see so many people that came out to volunteer; I never before saw so many people for an event like this.

At first my roommate Kris and I were told we would be helping the Girl Scouts out with arts and crafts, along with at least 50 other people.  But when a man came up asking for people to help him off campus with A.H.E.A.R.T. and no one stood up, we both looked at each other and proceeded to walk over and offer our help.  In the end there were five of us to help him out, and that’s all he needed.  We went to an elementary school in Atlantic City to sort out baby clothes for teen moms and moms who just need some help.  There were four lunch tables full of clothes for guys, and four for girls.  Not to mention the tables that had baby toys, chairs, strollers, and diapers, so many diapers.

Even though there was so much stuff, be it pride or poor advertising, there were only about ten mothers who came in for things.  And even they did not want to take a lot of things, mostly saying how they want to save things for the other mothers.  We had to convince them to take more things for their children, reminding me that the kids will grow and the winter will come soon.  There were bags and bags of clothes left after the day, as if nobody came at all.  It made us sad, knowing that there were so many other people that could be helped, but either did not know about it or were just too proud to come in for the free help.  A.H.E.A.R.T. now has Stockton’s information so when they have other things such as the clothing drive they can have help from the students here.  We learned that they do so much for mothers in Atlantic City and without Day of Service, we would know nothing about them at all.  I cannot wait to help them out more, they are such a good cause that is sorely needed still—even if the politicians say the economy is getting better, not everyone is seeing that.

The Day of Service was so much fun and I can’t wait for the next one.  Until then I have joined Circle K so I can keep volunteering, and Kris is keeping in contact with A.H.E.A.R.T. to get the word out about them and get them more help.  I’m grateful Stockton has a day like this, and encourages us to stay involved; more schools should have it more often.  Some many people could use a helping hand, and there are countless people with a hand to give them.  That’s what the Day of Service is all about, and I’m so glad I could lend a small hand.

 

Circle K-Project Linus

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I worked with Circle K and I made hand-stitched teddy bears for terminally ill children. This is just one of the many projects that Circle K allows for volunteers to engage in on our own campus. Some of their other activities include on campus service on Wednesday nights, volunteering with beagles on Saturday mornings and they serve food in Atlantic City at a soup kitchen.

In order to be able to participate in this activity I attended Circle K’s first meeting for the spring semester and I signed up to make bears for terminally ill children because I love kids and I felt like this opportunity was the most appealing to me. I went to the upper level of the Campus Center and picked out some blue-tie-dyed fabric. In order to make the bear I had to pick up a template and then fold the fabric in half in order to lay the template on top of it. I pinned the template on the fabric and cut around the edges very carefully because I did not want to have an imperfect bear. Then I took the template off pinned the fabric back together and picked up my needle and thread. I threaded the needle with blue thread and tied my knot to ensure a tight, everlasting stitch. Once I finished sealing the edges I turned the teddy bear inside out and began to stuff him. After the teddy bear reached his fill I sewed his last little opening up and drew eyes, a nose, and a mouth on his face.

I felt a sense of completion after I had invested about two and a half hours into this little teddy bear; in a way I felt attached to it. I had sewn the teddy bear with my love and care for a child. I can only imagine this child’s reaction upon receiving my little, fluffy creation. I wonder if a boy or girl will be the new owner, but it does not matter because he or she will greatly appreciate this bear.

 

The 8th Annual Day of Service

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On January 16th, Stockton College held its 8th Annual Day of Service in which students and faculty worked on various service projects that benefitted the local community.  Not coincidentally, this Day of Service was held on the Martin Luther King, Jr., federal holiday.  During the opening remarks, the speakers connected the day’s purpose with the life and vision of Martin Luther King, Jr.  Besides honoring the life of a great civil rights leader, this holiday was also envisioned as a call for Americans to go out and volunteer in their communities.

The Day of Service took place both on-campus and off-campus at charities in the surrounding community.  My project that day was working at the Gilda’s Club of South Jersey in Linwood, NJ.  Stockton sent seven students to Gilda’s Club, and upon arriving, we were greeted by Adria Light, Gilda’s program manager.  Before assigning us the tasks for the day, the group learned about the purpose and history of Gilda’s Club.  Gilda’s Club was named after a former Saturday Night Live comedian named Gilda Radner.  In 1989, Radner died from ovarian cancer, and Gilda’s Club was formed in her honor.  The purpose of Gilda’s Club is to provide emotional support for people and their families who are suffering from the effects of cancer.  Gilda’s Club is a free service to the community, and today, there are 22 Gilda’s Clubs in the United States offering their support and care to all who need it.

The primary job that Ms. Light had our group complete was cleaning the clubhouse.  Each person chose a different job to do.  I primarily washed windows while other people swept and vacuumed floors.  Ms. Light first sent us to clean an area of the clubhouse that is leased to local businesses.  These local businesses provide a source of income for the club that helps fund many of their programs.  Spending the Day of Service at Gilda’s Club was a wonderful experience.  It felt great to help a local charity that keeps the spirits up for those suffering from cancer.

 

PetSmart 11/17/12

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The Honors Program requires freshman to attend at least three service events by the end of the first semester.  I had first thought this to be an annoyance, considering it to be another obstacle to success.  This viewpoint changed rapidly when I realized the numerous options for volunteering; instead of an unwanted task, there was the possibility of doing something truly enjoyable.  This hope became reality at the Circle K meeting on November 14th, where I learned about the weekly event at the local PetSmart.

This volunteering opportunity consists of playing with animals for two hours, namely beagles and various kittens.  The idea is to keep them entertained as they wait for adoption, and even to raise interest to potential pet owners.  And, being an animal fanatic, I enjoyed every second of the experience.

I consider myself a professional at dealing with felines, and so spent a majority of my time with them. They ran up to me eagerly, daring me to chase them.  They swatted at feathers, and tackled each other if I was preoccupied.  At one point, ten kittens were chasing my one laser-pointer, going to extreme heights to snag the light.  Two hours eventually wore them out, and they began lying upon each other, content with intermittent petting.  Needless to say, there are now countless pictures of kittens on my phone.

Out actions may seem inconsequential, but I truly believe that those were two hours well spent.  Not only was the experience personally enjoyable, but the animals clearly relished the time with us.  It goes against the traditional idea of volunteering, but that makes it all the more special: countless people devote their time to soup kitchens, but few would bother improving the daily lives of caged animals.  I know for a fact that I will be returning to PetSmart, and encourage others to do the same.

 

Operation Blessing

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Hurricane Sandy left its destructive mark on New Jersey at the end of October. When the hurricane hit, I was one of the least affected. My broken fence was the only indication a hurricane had even passed over my house.  However, I watched in horror what the people in other areas, especially the barrier islands of New Jersey, were going through.  I saw the disappearance of Long Beach Island, the swell of sea foam in Seaside and the rise of water lines in towns I usually ran through with summer glee.  I knew as soon as I had the time, I would hop in a car and help the best I could.  Whole neighborhoods had flooded and many people were waking up after Hurricane Sandy with absolutely nothing of their houses left.  Who was I to sit in my perfectly fine dorm watching Netflix all day when people had lost everything and were trying to rebuild?  In my search for a way to help, I found myself at Operation Blessing, Friday, November 16th with the club, WaterWatch.

Operation Blessing is an international organization that often provides disaster relief.  They currently operate out of a church community center in Atlantic County.  Mostly, they help people clean out the houses but on Friday we had arrived too late because of classes to be assigned a house. Instead we were given t-shirts and an assignment to help out a Hurricane Relief Center a few miles down the road from the church.  We ended up at the Pinelands Community Hurricane Relief Center, helping the free clothing center.

The clothing center was packed with bags of donations and disorganized clothes spread out on long tables.  The three rooms, which only a week before had been open stores for rent, were stuffed.  In one corner was even a sprawling collection of toys, from stuffed animals to Fisher-Price cars.  We were handed trash bags and asked to help make some order in the place.  To add to the task, more donations lined the front of the stores and sat in front of a grocery store further down the shopping center. We worked quickly to make some semblance of the overwhelming supply of donated items.  I helped organize all the toys for the kids to sort through and then helped bring newer donations into the store.

While I was brining in newer donations, I was able to chat with one of the organizers of the clothing center.  He talked of the overwhelming response of the community with donations.  A few nights before we came, he said the entire area in front of the store was piled high with bags full of donations.  He had to call in ten trucks to take the donations away since they had no space. It was evident that everyone wanted to help donate what he or she could to the people in need. I find it amazing how New Jersey citizens have responded to the hurricane victims’ needs. In this time of need, people were generous enough to give bags of donations for the people. The donations weren’t just clothes or toys either, some were just items to make a house a home again for people.  There were Christmas decorations and house decorations that could help a person refurnish his or her home now that it was stripped of everything.

The people at the Pinelands Community Hurricane Relief clothing center were overwhelmed with all the supplies.  Operation Blessing sent us there to relieve that overwhelming feeling and help them sort through it all. I watched hurricane victims look at the donations with no clue where to start in some areas of the center.  However, in the parts we organized, they were able to find things easier.  A woman was able to get clothes for her son and herself much quicker a few hours into our organization than another woman I saw struggling when we first walked in.  As well, a small girl was able to find herself a new Barbie who she lovingly named on the spot.  We might not have been at the forefront of the work but we were able to help make a difference.  We didn’t help tear down walls or pull up carpets, but we were able to organize items that people will need to help put their lives back together.  I plan to continue volunteering with Operation Blessing to help, even if it is in the smallest way.

 

Things Hurricane Sandy has Taught Me

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Thanksgiving is quickly approaching, and while we all may salivate at the thought of mashed potatoes and turkey legs piled five feet high, many students will return to Stockton and scatter to tie up any lose ends of their fall semester. Finals will begin, underclassmen and upperclassmen alike cramming to complete late night study sessions. The majority will turn to the espresso at the Bean’s List to roll out of bed in the morning and truck through their final exams. Frankly, in the life of college students, finals season isn’t really much to be thankful for. But I implore that the students of Stockton take this time of thanks giving to reflect on the many gifts life has to offer.

Hurricane Sandy has taught me many things. It has taught me that, in times of great need and despair, humanity is truly caring. Just recently, a woman from Barnes and Noble’s customer service took the time to ask me how my family was fairing even as I was yelling at her from the other line of the phone. She saw that our college was in an area affected by Hurricane Sandy and wanted to make sure we were all okay. It was at that moment that I realized that I’ve been worrying about the less important things in life. Rather than make a scene that my The Perks of Being a Wallflower novel was sent to a man named George in Monroe Township(and NOT me), I’m thankful that this woman took the time to show her concern for the areas of New Jersey ravished by Hurricane Sandy. I am thankful that my family is safe and my home is intact. I am thankful that we still have a college to take those dreadful finals in.

Stockton has truly risen to its full potential in this time of need. Clothing and food drives have taken place, and Dean Pedro Santana has offered his compassion and commitment to students who have experienced devastating loss. Clubs like Water Watch have devoted their time to help residents of the barrier islands and surrounding areas pick up the pieces and rebuild their communities. Katherine Austin, a fellow Honors student, has initiated a t-shirt sale in which all proceeds will be donated to the American Red Cross. Perhaps Stockton is so involved because this devastation hits so close to home-outside of our windows, down the street, maybe even our own homes. But I would like to think that our community would care even if this hurricane were in the Gulf of Mexico or on the coast of California. The Stockton family is composed of some of the most caring, compassionate, and devoted human beings that I have ever met; Hurricane Sandy has opened my eyes to this.

I am thankful to spend this upcoming season with my family. I am thankful for my home, my friends, and my church community. I am thankful for the students and faculty at Stockton who have stepped up in this time of devastation and reminded me that humanity is truly good. These are the things Hurricane Sandy has taught me.

 

Preserving Local History on Stockton’s 8th Annual Day of Service

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Atlantic City has had a rich and varied history for the past 150 years.  From its beginning as a small seaside community, to the glitzy gambling and shopping destination it is today, the city has been reinvented and reimagined many times over.  Since 1857, one constant has remained.  The Absecon Lighthouse quietly stands on Pacific and Rhode Island Avenues, keeping an ever watchful eye on the sea.  For Stockton’s 8th Annual Day of Service, a group of students including myself had the opportunity to learn about and preserve this historic structure.

The Day of Service started on the morning of September 10th with a gathering of participants to listen to an opening address by President Saatkamp, and a speech by Charles Uhl, an EMS responder on September 11, 2001.  Their remarks set the tone of the day by focusing on the 10th Anniversary of 9-11, and the meaning of service.  After this, everyone was dismissed to their various projects.  Roughly 25 students boarded a school bus that took us to the Absecon Lighthouse.

Upon arriving, we were greeted by Alice Stryker, a member of the museum staff, who split us into several groups and assigned each group different tasks.  Our first job was picking any weeds that had grown around the base of the tower.  Next, we worked on cleaning the windows of the tower and their sills.  After this was completed, we climbed to the top of the lighthouse and took in the impressive views of Atlantic City and the ocean.  Our final job was sweeping and wiping down the walls of the Oil House.  The Oil House had to be cleaned with extra care.  We wore gloves because the oils from our hands could damage the mortar of the walls.  That day, I learned that the Absecon Lighthouse was built in the 1850s and was used until 1933.  It is the tallest lighthouse ever be constructed in New Jersey, and it is the third tallest lighthouse in the United States.

Volunteering at the Absecon Lighthouse gave me an appreciation for the local history near Stockton.  Structures likes this deserve the attention of the local community.  I am especially grateful to the Office of Student Development for making this day possible.  It is important for college students to give back to their community, and I look forward to next semester’s Day of Service.

 

Cleaning the Beach

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I headed toward a classroom in the Arts and Sciences building where Water Watch, a club organized by Stockton students, was meeting for the first time this semester. I was not sure what kind of students to expect or what exactly the members of the club had in mind in terms of activities and goals. The club turned out to be an organization with the primary goals of learning about the environment and doing what we can to improve its health and continued sustainability. I found the interests of this club to be intriguing as I understand the value of our natural environment as well as the consequences it has faced due to the actions of humans in their quest toward industrialization and progress. All of the members were so nice and with the shared interests between us I knew that I would fit in wonderfully.

Immediately upon gaining interest in Water Watch, an announcement was made about an upcoming beach cleanup. This event was to take place only three days after the meeting and I signed up promptly for the September 28th, 2012 beach sweep in Ocean City. Everybody was so kind and inviting in terms of coordinating meeting places, compromising on a time frame, and assisting with transportation from Stockton to the beach location and back.

The students headed toward the designated location where the beach cleanup would be taking place. Everybody was handed gloves for protection and garbage bags for collecting the discarded trash that would be found along the beach surfaces. We then divided into groups and began our mission to locate and properly discard as much garbage as possible. It was absolutely amazing the quantity of human-generated debris that could be found along the beach surfaces, especially beneath the boardwalk. It was also quite riveting to observe the sorts of things people left behind; these included anything from empty bottles to cigarette buds to food packaging remains to broken toys to used diapers. I was in great disbelief at the quantity of garbage that was spotted within just the short period of an hour and of the specific content of the trash items.

As the specified time frame for the beach sweep was coming to an end, all of the groups collected together at the original point where we broke off originally. Each group had easily filled their entire garbage bag. Some people had even discovered some fascinating items such as a horseshoe crab molt. We all then proceeded to walk out onto the jetty toward the water to bask for a moment in the natural beauty of the ocean, take a group picture, and head back to campus.

This experience was fun, productive, and educational. We were able to contribute positively to the condition of the beach; however, it was deeply obvious that we had made barely a dent in the prevalent issue of beach contamination. People need to be more cognizant of their actions and the resulting implications. More people need to apply themselves towards reducing the already-existent contamination of the environment and continue this process to the point of changing one’s habits in order to help reduce future contribution to the destruction of nature and instead assist in its preservation. I am very excited for future beach cleanups as well as other activities that I will have the opportunity in which to participate through Water Watch in an effort to learn more about the environment and improve its condition for ourselves and future generations.

 

Fundraising for relief

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Coming to Stockton came with a lot of changes for me. I was suddenly no longer in high school, where it had been almost a continuous schedule for four years. I was no longer going to see the people I had gone to school with for the last twelve years. I also came to fully accept that I wouldn’t be seeing my best friends every day anymore. Having your best friends with you in almost every class is something so relaxing and almost mundane for four years, that you don’t even realize how much you’re taking that for granted. So yes, coming to Stockton came with a lot of changes and to say I was nervous was an understatement.

Besides how nervous I was my first few weeks of school, I’ve come to believe that part of the beauty of schools is the opportunities that are presented for the students. There are clubs upon clubs and sports for every single perspective. The only real work that students have to put in regarding clubs and sports is actually looking for them. When I found out about the Muslim Student Association, I was extremely excited. After going to the first meeting, I knew I would be sticking with the club. The club doesn’t only deal with religious beliefs, but deals heavily with the idea of volunteer work which is a very important thing for me.

Stockton’s MSA is very involved with a few organizations, one being the Islamic Relief fun for Aid in Africa. This past October, our MSA joined up with dozens of other university MSAs to form the MSA-United fun for the Islamic Relief cause. The MSA-united group decided on a joined fundraising event for all the clubs across the state to meet up and raise money together. However, before that, all the clubs decided to indivicually raise money first.

Stockton’s MSA set up tables in lower D-wing for three days and I was fortunate enough to table for a few hours during the days. We sold baked goods including cookies, browines (which were heavenly) and samosas. We also provided Henna art for anyone willing to pay, and I was happy to offer my services in applying the henna to customers. It was fun and a completely different experience than what I was used to when tabling for clubs. We raised a significant amount of money and the joined MSA event was a lot of fun. It felt good to have connected and made friends with people of similar beliefs, and along the way it felt even better to have done something for people in need. College might have been a big change for me, but it was a change that has gladly been accepted.

 

 

Blog Post One – Eighth Annual Day of Service

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Community service is one of the most important activities an individual should be involved in and is rewarding in so many different areas. I am happy to say I attend Stockton College because here I am part of a community that understands this and wants to give back. Stockton encourages its students to volunteer and presents different enjoyable opportunities to aid the community, without serving feeling like an obligation. One of these is their day of service.

By attending the Eighth Annual Day of Service on September 10th, I was able to voluntarily spend the day with students and faculty like myself making a difference. It was a lot of fun. We had the chance to lend a hand on and off campus, meet new people, and enjoy some free food throughout the day too! I personally helped outside the college at the Covenant House in Atlantic City, which is an organization dedicated to getting young adults adapted to independent living. Our group of six was split up and assigned to washing the organization’s vans and weeding at their second location. I had a nice time and wished we could have stayed longer to assist in a few other jobs.

It is really great that Stockton has a day dedicated to service because volunteering gives people the chance to step out of their comfort zone and not only change someone else’s life for the better, but to also change their own. I have been engaging in different social work my whole life and I know there is no greater pleasure than making a difference. I have gained a higher respect for others and a greater appreciation for the life I have been blessed with. Everyone has the power to give their time and effort to help others. Through the experiences that can only be gained through community service, we grow in compassion and learn that serving is anything we can do to support others.