Michael on money, service, and what's between

As I prepare for graduation, I have been considering the course that my service will take outside of the Bonner program. After having been a Bonner, I'm deeply accustomed to working in the community as a standard part of my schedule. It seems impossible to stop at this point.

The issue as I face in entering the larger, post-Wofford world is the balance between making ends meet financially and still working towards social justice in a way that I can feel good about. As I've mentioned elsewhere on this blog, I will be attending law school in the fall. In law school, I will have many opportunities to serve the community I'm in through legal clinics and summer internships at nonprofits. This is a little easier to imagine, though - I'll still be in an academic setting and making money will not be my primary goal.

Though things could always change, I currently have difficulty seeing myself in a work setting after law school that is not service-oriented. The job could be governmental or in a nonprofit - the important part is that it helps change something for the better. Particularly in the areas of civil rights and civil liberties law, becoming an attorney will hopefully allow me to take my service to a new level of efficacy. The problem will be resisting the higher paychecks and greater clout a more traditional legal career would provide.

Bonner is a perfect example, though, of a program that is highly profitable and service-oriented. I signed up for Bonner because of the scholarship money, but I stayed a Bonner because I love feeling like I've been valuable to my community. I hope to find a comparable balance in my professional life as well.

Jose on new ideas

My volunteer site was at the assistance league thrift shop of Charlotte. The Assistance League of Charlotte is a nonprofit volunteer organization dedicated to improving the lives of children and families through community-based philanthropic programs. . Even though our task was simple, being able to take part in the service the thrift shop provides for the community was certainly rewarding. The impact the thrift store has on community is phenomenal.

The volunteer staff of the thrift shop gave of us the simple tasks of helping sort out their accepted donations. The volunteer staff helps organize and pay special attention to the assorted donations that come into the shop, and make sure that the merchandise is of the best quality for the customers. They maintain a descent amount of stock of goods in the back of the store. It’s without a doubt that the store runs so well thanks to all its volunteers, including those who take part even in the simplest of tasks. Such as organizing decorative items by the holiday or occasion they belong to on their shelves, which was my job at one point.

Throughout the day I had the privilege of meeting some really awesome people. One of the volunteers was a student from a local high school that often comes in during his weekends, and volunteers at the thrift store for a couple hours. He mainly helps out in the back of the store folding clothes and organizing donated items like we did. When we asked him why he volunteers he was simply honest and explained to us that it was a part of the volunteer work he’s required to do for a school organization that he is a member of. He says the thrift shop does so much for those in need.

You could definitely see that as I first entered the store. You notice the people who didn’t have much were able to buy various amounts of items. As I came out to put out an item in the store front you could see the kids picking of their favorite jackets that will hopefully keep them warm during the cold month of January. What really touched me was when I was able to understand the Hispanic couple that the wife was telling her husband that they did not have much to spend. However, by the time they walked out they were surprised they had enough money to buy clothes for their whole family. It was moments like these that made me stop and appreciate the things we are blessed with.

After we left the store, I still couldn’t forget the Hispanic couple and I thought of an idea that has not been done in awhile at the Hispanic Catholic service that I attend. That is, people bringing clothes that they don’t use anymore for the people in our mass that really need it. I thought of all the clothes I don’t wear anymore that I have still lying in my closet, and made it a plan that I will be bringing them to church soon.

Whitney on urban restoration

For our All Bonner Winter Retreat this year, we volunteered our services to various places in the city of Charlotte, North Carolina. My group was chosen to serve at the Urban Restoration Center, which is a nonprofit organization serving the children and families of the inner city of Charlotte since 1993. Urban Restoration is Charlotte’s largest inner-city outreach ministry that aims at decreasing crime, drugs, gangs, and abandonment issues within the area and helping local ministries to grow stronger in order to assist people experiencing these factors.

The Urban Restoration building has several classrooms for its youth programs which include Saturday Morning Kid’s Club, Summer Camp, After-School Services, Christian School, and Counseling. Other youth programs that are fit for older youth are Friday Night Youth Group, Job Training, Sports Teams, Athletic Camps and Mentoring. Programs developed for inner-city families include Emergency Food Assistance, Household Appliance Assistance, Family Counseling, Job Training, Parenting Classes, and Foster Parent Training. Lately more families are becoming involved with Urban Restoration and the amount of space available to hold them all is limited. Therefore, the organization plans on adding more classrooms and hallways to the building.

When we visited Urban Restoration the staff was in the process of remodeling the entrance way of the building. They needed us to paint the walls green in order to brighten it up from the bland beige color it had at the time. It was my first time ever painting a whole room before and I found it enjoyable. We were only able to finish the first coat of paint. However it still had an effect on the front entrance by giving it a more comfortable and inviting atmosphere. I’m sure that after the entire building is remodeled, it can attract even more families and youth to expand its size and outreach.

Hannah on the not-so-glamorous types of service

The annual Bonner winter retreat is a day of service where all Wofford Bonners spread out among different service sites. This year, we traveled to Charlotte, where I volunteered with many others at Joshua’s Farm. Joshua’s Farm is a therapeutic horse riding center. Patients visit for all types of needs. Horse riding stimulates tension spots all over the body and relaxes them. I had a hard time at first seeing how horse riding could relax anyone… I would imagine if one has never ridden a horse it would be a rather frightening experience. One of the instructors explained how patients enjoy riding the horses and use it as a place to escape and relieve stress. The coolest part (in my opinion) of the farm was where patients could come pet other farm animals. I love animals, so this is where I spent most of my time. To help out, a group of us scooped poop all day. As gross as it sounds, I loved every minute of it. The animals were, for the most part, so friendly and adorable. I could sit all day with the mule, or one of the goats, of both of the pigs. After we left the site and went to reflect, I realized my small deed of scooping poop went a long way. The instructors at Joshua’s farm do, and need to, spend all of their time helping the patients. If more people volunteered to do the dirty work, the farm could serve more of those in need and be cleaner at the same time. Turns out, scooping poop goes a long way!