Week 7

Wow, I can't believe I'm done. It's time to go back to Miami, but I'm going to miss the rescue. I'm not going to miss Nemec at all. This summer taught me that I should be grateful that I never had to stay in Nemec for a whole year. I learned a lot and got a lot done that would help the rescue continue thriving in the future. The experience has made me more confident with dogs and people. Thank you Bonner for this awesome opportunity, I couldn't have imagined ending any other way.

Week 5, Final week

Hey Everyone,

This is my last week with my SoS before I leave for the Innsbruck Program. Working with Courtney and the rest of the RSVP team has been a great experience; so many people have no idea that there is this huge untapped resource in our communities of retired people, and it's a group I think needs to be utilized more.

With all of the other projects I was working on I shared the things I did research on for the retreat with the people in charge so hopefully they get some use of the things I gathered. The Freshman Exploration is still a work in progress but will be completed soon.


See you all in the fall!

Week 4

Hi Everyone,

Things continue to move forward in RSVP, I spend time assisting Courtney in doing office work, planning orientations, and with recruitment. As I mentioned before the larger numbers are difficult to get. I'm not sure if this is because of a lack of interest from retirees in the Volusia County area, or if it's because people who are retired from their careers are still doing some work.

I have begun work on planning the Freshman Exploration, I am going to lay it out at first on what "area" they should explore at what times and I will incorporate the newly selected community partners.

Week 3

Hey Everyone,

Things are still progressing with RSVP, we had one volunteer express interest in working with children but felt this was not the best match for her. So now we have to take some time to convince her that maybe she would be a better fit in the Small Business Disaster Preparedness Program.

With my other projects I have almost complied all of my ideas for the Retreat into an action plan. I am going to look for some guidance on the best way to plan out Freshman Exploration.

Week 2

Hi everyone,

Things are going well with the RSVP Program, though it does look like they'll begin doing some restructuring of the way the Volusia County office is working.

It is a good program, but it seems that in every county in the state the biggest issue they are all facing is that it's difficult to find people to recruit. All of the volunteer coordinators are expected to come up with these large numbers, and in my opinion I think the numbers are a bit too high to expect one person to achieve. I could see how this would become frustrating, especially when to so many people there are no personal benefits.

As far as my other projects are going the Retreat looks promising and I've gotten some feedback. Also I won't need to do anything for orientation so that's a relief.

Week 7 - Project Reflection & Closure

Week 7

       After a looooooong summer of service, I feel a sense of accomplishment with the work I did at my service sites. I played so many different roles at my sites and gained a lot of knowledge in new areas. With BGC, I mainly played the role of a mentor. At Habitat, I did some clerical work and got experience in a professional work setting. I also worked in the ReStore (Habitat Thrift Shop) a couple of days, and attended customers. With the food bank, I worked sorting food and packaging it for distribution in the Sarasota community. I also served as a TA for some nutritional cooking classes for kids and for adults. I enjoyed having a busy schedule, but was thankful for some time to relax before school started up again. I have definitely grown a lot as a person throughout this process. I feel like I'm less inhibited in situations where I have to go do things without knowing anyone. I also met a lot of special people at the BGC and really connected with the kids. I'm definitely gonna be going back during the year to see them, and will be working hard to incorporate some music and art into their lives.

Week 6 - Project Evaluation

Week 6

    The initial project (Bonner Summer Fellows) definitely didn't pan out the way we had anticipated. However, after volunteering with the Boys & Girls club all summer, I have gained some helpful insight about the dynamics of the club and how to interact with the kids. This information will be helpful to share with the campers next year. I've also created solid working relationships with the staff at BGC and my two other sites back home. My favorite thing about this summer is that I was able to work with kids of all ages; both with BGC and the food bank.

    With Habitat, my main project was to clean up their website and update content. They didn't know how to use the software, so I was able to show them the basics and make the site a little easier to navigate. I also helped them extract information from their volunteer database and categorize the volunteers that had been active within the past year. I then transferred those names to an access document which allows habitat the capability of filtering volunteers by age, sex, etc. in order to create mailing lists for their different events. 

    

Week 5 - Personal Reflections

Week 5

     This summer I tried a lot of new things and experienced a lot of personal growth through my service. I learned that there is no better way to get something done other than forcing yourself to make that initial push. The main improvement I see in myself is an increase in autonomy. I feel more comfortable now going out and meeting new people and making new connections. I was also able to use some skills that I developed at Stetson for the first time. For example, at Habitat, I was able to help them create a database of all their active volunteers and a mailing list of contributors using skills I learned in MIS. I was also able to improve other skills such as web design, communication, etc.... The main thing that has impacted me about my summer of service is the realization that one person can have a big effect on a large number of people. This motivates me to try to do more with my CLA...I'd like to start making steps toward bringing a music & art program to Chisholm and BGC once a week.

Week 4 Reflection June 28, 2013: Project Evaluation and Closure

This week we successfully completed our fourth and final week at La Plataforma Global—it has been a very busy, productive month!

As promised, I have an update on our campaign that we spent countless hours planning last week! We decided as a group that we wanted to educate the young adults of El Salvador, specifically students at the University of San Salvador, of the effects of extractive industries on the land and on the people, and to mobilize them in joining our cause. So, on Tuesday morning, we drove to the capital and executed our peaceful demonstration on the campus of the University of San Salvador. In flash mob style, we would casually walk in small groups until we were given the signal to drop to the floor and place our hand-made skull masks on our face. One of the students was designated to sound a siren and, from a megaphone, dramatically announce our names and that we had all been killed from contaminated water and other pollution caused by mining companies contaminating our water and land. After the dramatic eulogy, we would rise, take off our masks, and do a brief, fun dance singing what it would be like if there were a law in place against mining that protected water rights. We then distributed pamphlets to the students and faculty educating them on the conflict of land grabs in El Salvador and invited them to sign a big banner that stated, “Estoy con una ley contra la minería,” (I support a law against mining).

Planning and executing this campaign was more challenging than I had expected, but it was also very fulfilling. The students and faculty of the University of San Salvador were very receptive and supportive of our campaign. I especially enjoyed working with my fellow Action Aid activists on this campaign from beginning to end; it was such a great opportunity to put the theory of nonviolence and social movements into practice. 

Week 3 Reflection June 24, 2013: Project and Personal Reflection

Week 3’s theme was Tácticas y Estrategias, Tactics and Strategies. We have spent the week learning how to strategically plan a social or political campaign. The important steps of the planning process include outlining influential people and institutions at the local, national, and international levels; analyzing the strengths, opportunities, weaknesses, and threats to the campaign; and a detailed and concise outline of the problem, objective, historical and social context, audience, and the means of carrying out the campaign. Phew! All of these exercises will be useful for us when planning campaigns and projects we will implement in our own communities.

Next week, before we return home, we will have the opportunity to put our strategic planning to use by planning and executing a campaign in the community. As a group, we are all deciding what social/political issue to focus on, who our audience is, the methods of the campaign, our goals, etc. It is a challenging but exciting process because we are all eager to go out into the community to educate and mobilize others. More updates on the campaign next week!

Week 2 Reflection June 17, 2013: Service Challenges and Relationships in Communities

Week 2’s theme was Realidad y Resistencia (Reality and Resistence). Overall, this week we learned a lot about the political and social context of land grabs in El Salvador. We all had the opportunity to travel on a viaje de campo. During our viaje, we stayed with a family for a few days to better understand the local community’s efforts against extractive industries and for a more sustainable lifestyle. This was an especially incredible experience in which, for three days, we stayed with the family of Hector Berrios, the Director of Mufras, and learned about their sustainable agricultural efforts and even helped with physical labor on the farm. Although I was very impressed with the innovation and effectiveness of their efforts, Hector noted how there is a need to improve the marketing of their products. Later I asked him, what exactly does he need? Without hesitation, Hector answered that education, especially educating the El Salvadorian youth, is integral to keep sustainability efforts moving forward.

Week 1 Reflection June 10, 2013: Goals for Service

I can’t believe I have already spent my first week in El Salvador! To briefly fill you in: I am working with a non-profit organization called Action Aid which, much like Oxfam, works for a world where every human being has access to basic rights, including water, education, political representation, and health. I, along with about 20 other students, are participating in Action Aid’s four-week course in which we will learn about land grabs in Latin America and how to strategically plan a campaign in our respective communities. (All workshops and community events are conducted in Spanish!) We will also be planning and executing our own campaigns in both San Salvador and local rural communities.

Overall, I am satisfied with the outcomes of Week 1. I am very happy with how the students all cooperate and share stories both inside and outside the classroom. I believe we have established a solid working foundation among the students for which to build our future work together.  

The first week’s theme was Teoria y Creatividad (Theory and Creativity). We engaged creatively through group work (e.g. brainstorming qualities of an activist leader, presenting our different ideas of utopias, and preparing for and participating in a march—which were all successful!) and learned about the theory of nonviolence activism by reading Marshall Ganz’s works on the theory for mobilization and nonviolence activism.

What is most amazing about this experience is the diversity of all the students. There are about 5 American students and 20 students from throughout Central and South American, including Guatemala, Chile, and El Salvador. I believe all students have valuable experiences to share and, as an American student, it is especially important to me that I better understand the problem within the context of the Latin American community.

Week 2- Service Challenges

Week 2

Deonte falling asleep during lunch

     Week 2 of my summer of service really tried me in a number of ways. During the year, my regular service site is the Chisholm Center. Obviously, I'm no stranger to kids, and I know they can be a handful....but nothing could have prepared me for the chaos at Boys & Girls Club. I quickly discovered that working 10 hrs continuously every day with a large group of kids requires a certain degree of patience and the ability to brush things off quickly. The kids at the BGC were very different from the kids at Chisholm because they grew up in a rougher neighborhood. They don't always listen. The challenge this presented me with was needing to be firmer and more assertive with my treatment of the kids, while still appearing friendly.

     At Habitat for Humanity & All Faiths,  the main challenge I faced was forcing myself to be outgoing and start conversations with complete strangers.

Week 3 - Relationships in Communities

Week 3

     While working in the DeLand community, I was staying on campus in Nemec Hall. However, in preparation for the new school year and new tenants, I had to move out on the 27th and was able to finish up my hours at home in Sarasota. When I left the Boys & Girls Club I could feel a strong connection to the kids that I had been spending my time with. I noticed that between Chisholm and BGC, I have met a very large number of kids from DeLand, and that in whatever small way, I've played a part in their lives. This special relationship with these kids has provided a solid foundation for me to continue working with them and contributing to their lives throughout my four years at Stetson. Moreover, the experiences that I've had with them will help me with my future plans of starting a foundation for at-risk youth to express themselves freely through art and music.

Dameona

     Back home in Sarasota, I also felt a strong connection to the community as I volunteered with Habitat for Humanity and All Faiths Food Bank. The work that is done at Habitat is so important to the SRQ community. Habitat provides the opportunity for families with few resources to "earn" a home by completing a required amount of hard labor (in hours). I felt honored to be able to play a small role in the work they do there. Similarly, the food bank provides a crucial service to homeless and low income families in SRQ. At all three sites, what I liked the most was knowing for certain that I was making a difference in the community. Perhaps one of the most important relationships formed was with other volunteers and Bonners. I truly enjoyed being surrounded by like-minded individuals who were all actively seeking solutions to problems in the community.

Week 4 - Project Reflection

Week 4

Took the kids bowling!

     After being at the Boys & Girls Club for a couple weeks, I think that this site definitely needs to be incorporated into the Bonner Summer Fellows Camp. A couple of high school youth groups have visited for a couple days and come to BGC to play with the kids. They loved it; the kids crave attention. I think that having a high school mentor come in for an entire summer would benefit the kids greatly and impact their lives positively. I think that there is an opportunity here to provide each kid with a mentor (kind of like a big brother program) that could help them improve in school, music, sports, or whatever else they needed. The campers would also benefit by being able to see the growth of the child.

Week 6

So this post is supposed to be about project evaluation and regrettably all of the projects at DCF were long term and the one here in Deland ended up falling through at the very last minute. On a lighter and more positive note though I did get to see and assist with the development of some really cool things at DCF!

The first was the Vivatrol program which had been approved by the State for more funding. We went through some of the applications from the clinics and had begun choosing which ones would receive the drug. While I was there we approved three more clinics to use drug!

Prevention month unfortunately got pushed back due to the importance of the reorg within the office but I made some progress on it by contacting key organizations and developing program proposals.

Lastly there was a lot of improvement and work that went into the reorganization of the office. When I got there the office was just in the developmental stages of their strategic plan. I had the opportunity to assist in developing and sharpening that strategic plan alongside my boss and we helped it grow and now it's within it's final stages. Woo hoo!



I ended up spending the last of my days at DCF looking up Florida Statute and updating the DCF substance abuse and mental health requirements, assisting in the Block Grant request, and attending strategic planning meetings.

Week 5

Personal reflection time!

    I really should have planned out my Summer better.. Where did it go?! 

  The internship is going well, I've been going on trips with some of the other employees. I went to French town which is a poor community in Tallahassee and sat in on a community conference. The conference was about the establishment of a sort of Sober house a few miles away. The sober house is going to be in connection with their community center where a lot of homeless and poor come to get help from social workers. Whats really cool about this sober house is that it isn't a emergency shelter or a transitional shelter but it us a more permanent living situation where currently men can come and live. They all go to NA or AA together and are drug tested regularly to make sure that no one is using within the building. There are apparently a lot of homes like this in South Florida but there's also a lot of abuse and no regulation.  So DCF is working on creating a program similar to LEED certification where you can get a stamp of approval or a rating through the state as more of a marketing appeal for SOME regulation. 

    A lot of the projects I'm working on are really cool and speak to me on a really personal level. Ive been working with employees on methadone clinics , prescription drug abuse, and underage alcohol abuse in Broward which is where I'm from. Ive had 5 people die back home from all of those things, all of who were under the age of 21. So, it's really cool to be able to work and try to help the community. However, I don't know if I could ever work for the State. The state is SO SLOW and I'm not sure if it's this specific office-probably not- but there's a lot of interoffice DRAMA. However, if I could get contracted through the office that'd be really cool or maybe be a provider for homelessness or substance abuse. 

   Not only had this internship and this summer in general made me realize that I need to PLAN better but that I need to being finding specific service sites that speak to me on a personal level. So, I think I'm going to start working more directly with homelessness and substance abuse issues within the area along with children. OK, I'm going to TRY to work with children. No promises though... 

B LOVE! 

Week 2 & 3

    Hey guys!
     
      I haven't been keeping up with my blog because there hasn't been too much happening with my summer of service. There were a lot of challenges finding ways to fill my day and gain hours at my CLA. I began summer working in the Neighborhood Center acting as a "floater"-filling bags, intake, answering phone calls, etc. I also met Nita Shmellick who runs The Community Foundation of East Central Florida. We met, and she asked me to help her with her foundations facebook and web page which has been proving more difficult than I had originally anticipated.. Nita and I also talked about community needs that I had been seeing on the site visits. I told her a little about family renew and she gave me some contact info to set up classes for those families.
     
     The most challenging thing I believe about being in DeLand was finding hours. I ended up going on some site visits with Hannah, Heather, Savannah, and Amber which was fun and interesting. I also worked at the Border Collie Rescue a bit on the weekends cleaning their shed and letting the dogs out with Anniarka. With all of that being said Ive also been building a lot of relationships through meeting community partners, working at the Neighborhood Center, and meeting the amazing Nita. It was refreshing for me to get out of the office and into the community to learn about the different providers in the area.
     
     By the third week I was really worried about my hours and the amount of time I had left at Stetson. I hadn't completed the amount I should have and I was starting to panic. It was then that I received a call from DCF (Department of Children and Families) that informed me I had been accepted into their internship program for the rest of the summer. After I received confirmation from Hannah, I packed my things and drove to Tallahassee where I've been working ever since.