I would like to begin by telling you what the definition of “Civic Responsibility” is: “Responsibility of the Citizen”. That is not the definition that I, myself, take as the meaning. To me, Civic Responsibility means that, “If you are going to consider yourself part of a group, or civilization, then you have to pull your weight. Whether that be through your work, or just keeping your neighborhood clean, everyone has a job, and they should be expected to do that task in a timely manner.” Now, whether or not you agree with that statement or not, that was my opinion, and we are all entitled to our own. I believe that the purpose of this assignment was to get us thinking about how others felt, and acted towards someone who is out changing the …show more content…
People wait in a huge line for hours and hours, but once they get their food, they knew it was worth the wait. Choosing this for my service project was a no-brainer, it involved the community, enough hours to complete the task, and volunteering. I wish that the foundation was a year round thing but they only serve during Thanksgiving holiday. It take 9 months for them to raise the money to put it on, and it take around $25,000 to do so. They get churches on board, local schools, and businesses of all kinds. I think the job I did there was important when it comes to my ideal of Civic Responsibility, because I was there for the people who could not help themselves in this expensive time of year. I pushed a shopping cart and filled it up with food, all while talking about their lives and making them smile and laugh, after the cart was full, I would load the food into their vehicles and send them on their …show more content…
I had to deal with some really nice people, as well as some pretty crazy ones. You just have to be nice and compassionate in the long run. The building was set up so that some people would be bagging food, and moving food, even eating the food in some cases!- but we all had to work together as a well-oiled machine. So I guess you could say I gained some team building experience as well. I believe in the importance of people working together to see a problem as well as fix it, and that is exactly what we did. It was easy to get mad as some of the folks were rude and obnoxious, but we all kept our cool (that I know of). As we got there I was kinda stressed out because I had no idea what we would be doing, I did not know how long we would be there, etc., etc. But the stress melted off as I saw peoples’ lives change before my very eyes. It is cheaper than therapy, and It makes other people happy, I would suggest volunteering at the Bread of Life to
After volunteering three times with the social action committee and high school group from Emerson Unitarian Universalist Church in the previous years, the Houston Food Bank became very familiar both in regards of their history and how their volunteerism works. The Houston Food Bank is a non-profit organization that seeks donations of non-perishable food items to serve the low-income families in eighteen counties across Texas. However, during a recent trip to the food bank with the University of Houston-Downtown College of Business, the interactions with a larger group of classmates became more dynamic. Three main topics involving group work at the Houston Food Bank are service learning, community service, and volunteerism. Service learning
The lunch bell rung at full volume as the main doors flung open. I predicted that a herd of people will rush in like the water from a spill gate. But instead every person was a line; in fact it was a neat single filed line. Another thing I was astonished to see was to the fact that every single person I served to was superbly well mannered. It was the magical word of thank-you which left great remarks in my life and made my volunteering experience an enjoyable one. After the shift, I have come to realize that everything my family and friends have said about impoverished people was nothing but just a stereotype. In addition, I have self-discovered that volunteering is what I want to do on my spare time. The joy from making new friends, appreciated and making a difference in society was too meaningful to put in words. From then on, volunteering had become one of my most highly valued priorities. Whenever I have time to spare, I will go
Selecting to do my service learning at Harvest Hope Food Bank was a very impactful experience. This was so, because of the fact that I have never volunteered at a food bank until now. The organization was able to connect me with the required skills I will practice throughout my career as a professional social worker, therefore better preparing me for assisting clients who may be dependent on my services.
This past summer, I acquired an internship at Baldwin and Lyons, an insurance company in Indianapolis. Every Wednesday during my internship, a couple of employees and I participate in a prodigious community service project, Meals on Wheels. Throughout the three months that I worked at Baldwin and Lyons, I got acquainted with some of the individuals whom we delivered to. These inspiring individuals were so grateful and appreciative that we took time out of our day to volunteer to do such a service. One elderly woman who we delivered to would sing to us as she came to the front door “good meals, good meals, good meals.”
Volunteering at the food bank was an interesting experience. While I was working, I did have time to reflect on the things I was seeing. There were lots of observations to be made. The first thing that caught my eye was the type of people that were volunteering with us. While there was a both men and women helping.
I chose to do my service learning project at Feed My Starving Children. I chose this service learning project because I had prior knowledge and experience by doing it with my family and church. Feed My Starving Children has been a huge impact to those who have participated in this service experience because their mission is to pack meals that go to very hungry children around the world. Being from a single parent family, it is hard for us to not be concerned about where the money for food is coming from, yet we have food on our tables for everyday meals. Therefore, I can’t imagine what it is like for those who experience hunger.
I also recently volunteered at the Cleveland Food Bank by packing lunches for under privileged children and sorting non-perishable foods for those in need. Prior to participating in volunteer services for the day, we were required to watch a video that explains the purpose of the Cleveland Food Bank and why there is a need for continuous support. The Greater Cleveland Food Bank works to ensure that everyone in our communities has the nutritious food they need every day. The mission of the Cleveland Food Bank is to alleviate hunger by providing food and support to community organizations that feed the hungry. Many people depend on the support because of their financial situation, life changes, and possible mental or physical limitations. The Food Bank acts as a storage unit and distribution facility for smaller agencies and organizations such as schools, homeless shelters, churches, and day
Experts commonly define civic engagement as individual and group actions that collectively address general issues of concern that are public in nature. Civic engagement takes many forms such volunteerism, community organizing, and involvement in public policy and political issues. Individuals and community residents can express civic engagement through a variety of activities including participating in neighborhood associations, communicating with elected officials, and volunteering for local nonprofits.
The hope food pantry in Chicago consisted of a lot of preparation. we have to make sure we have enough food on what they thought how many people on average was going to show up. We had to bag the food.
Teamwork was something that I am very familiar with. Working at my local Dairy Queen, I have learned that other’s often need help (especially in areas that get more work like Drive Thru and grill) and since I don’t have any customers to wait on, I try to help them. This occurs at my other job as an Environmental Service Worker (housekeeping and laundry), where often don’t have enough housekeepers, we often send out a laundry worker to help them with their duties. Also after being on the busy side of these jobs I have learned to ask for help when I need it. Now, I learned that I should try to be very fluent in confrontations because that’s a component that Ms. Christ suggested that most of her resident assistants struggled with (which she seemed very
Refuge For The Hunger The Agency I chose to volunteer at was The Houston Food Bank which is located off Portwall Street. This Agency was founded in 1982 and is a non-profit organization that distributes food to thousands of low income families all over Houston and to 18 southeast counties and was named the top charity in Texas for financial performance and accountability. Volunteering at the Food Bank was an experience that was amusing and worthwhile. I met many other volunteers and I also got a chance to speak with the Volunteer Service Representatives. The Volunteer Service Representatives helped explain the history and goals of the Agency.
We, Aimee Johnson and Jessie Virnig, along with Amy Wilson and Shawn Klimek, decided to try to give the homeless a little hope. The week before Christmas we went door to door and collected food for the local homeless shelter. We decided to focus on collecting food because around the Christmas season, a lot of emphasis is put on toy drives and people sometimes overlook the fact that the homeless still need to eat. In order to broaden our research, we decided to collect food from more than one group of people. We went to an average middle class neighborhood and to a college dormitory. Before we went out into the neighborhood and dorms, we prepared a thank you letter to give to everyone explaining to them who we were, to tell them that we were collecting food for the homeles...
Activities and philosophies that advocate for the connecting of communities with socially sentient beliefs and actions is what have come to be referred to as civic engagement. They are thus individual or collective actions aimed at addressing issues that are deemed to be of public concern. They can be manifested in many ways including; public service, civil activity, service-learning, crusading and advocacy to mention but a few as the list is endless.
Being involved in the Charity Club at my school has enabled me to do my share regarding community service. In the Charity Club we organize meetings where we come up with different projects , and then we find ways to collect money and clothes for families in need.Just recently we did this project called MAAT, and the purpose of this project was to help the poor families in Pristina and grow the sense of humanism and volunteerism among the youth. During New Year’s day along side Red Cross we shipped food and clothes for families in the region. It was honestly the best feeling ever, seeing the smiles in their faces when they saw the presents we had for them, was priceless.
I also had the privilege of helping with the Meals on Wheels non profit organization. My grandfather used to be a Meals on Wheels recipient and he would share with me how he enjoyed looking forward to their company and a hot meal daily. I volunteered because I wanted to give back and help someone else’s loved one in the same way. It was very rewarding delivering hot meals to people who didn’t have the means of getting one as well as being there for them to talk to. Overall, it was a very humbling experience, it made me realize just how blessed I am and how much I take for granted daily.