It is so weird to think that this is the last blog I will be writing about my time at the Campus Kitchen. Peter and I got to the kitchen for our final shift this semester and were greeted by many unfamiliar faces. There were literally ten people volunteering in the tiny kitchen! While it was good to see so many people interested in volunteering, it was a little overwhelming. While some of the new volunteers set to work washing dishes, Peter, Kirsty, and I handled the LIU bags and Meals on Wheels. It was bittersweet when the end of the shift finally came. Peter and I are going to volunteer Mondays and Wednesdays next semester so it was not really goodbye at all. I feel as though my twelve weeks serving there at CKP impacted me in ways I can hardly describe. I feel as though I have learned so much, not only about food insecurity and poverty in Adams County, but about myself as well. While I was interested in volunteer work before I got involved in CKP, it is now an activity that I feel extremely passionate about. I now seek ways to incorporate as many volunteer activities as I can into my schedule. While some students participate in such activities because it will "look good on their grad school applications" I feel that this is truly an awful reason to volunteer. To really gain something from your volunteer experiencing, one must be dedicated to giving back to the community and really forgetting about themselves and their needs for just a few hours each week. If everyone was truly this passionate about volunteer work, think of how much better off we would all be! While this might sound cliche, I truly believe in what I am writing. I am so grateful I became involved in this class because it has profoundly affected who I am today as well as who I hope to be tomorrow. So, thank you so much Fee and Tasha... you can expect big things from me:)

This past thursday was the last week of life skills at the shelter!! I'm sad to say that I was unable to go again! This time I had to go to a extracurricular component for my spanish class. Someone came in from the career development center to talk to the residents about resumes, interviews, and what not. I didn't think I would ever be saying this, but I'm really sad that the life skills class is over. I feel that we just were figuring out how things work, and what's the best ways to run the class, and now it's over. Every week at the shelter was it's own eye opening experience. Although it was so frustrating in the beginning we all grew to enjoy our time there, especially with the children. Because residents came and left, we were not close with everyone, but there was a group of them who were there the whole time who we formed stronger relationships with. I hope to stop in every once in a while to say hi. It would be fun to go over and make dinner with them one night and just chat with them. I also think that we are going to offer to babysit for them when they need. Of course we are all so busy with school, but even just once a month would be better than nothing. Overall, I can say that my time at the shelter was worth it. I'm proud to call myself a shelter lady, and can say that I am taking so much away from the experience.

So this week was our last session of life skills classes at the homeless shelter. I had arranged for a speaker (Kathy) from the Center for Career Development here on campus to come in. Kathy did an absolutely wonderful job! She covered interview skills, cover letters, and resumes. The session was extremely informative; I know that I personally learned a lot! It also appeared as though the clients of the shelter did as well. It was such a sad night. I looked forward to going to the shelter every thursday because of the relationships I have built with the adults and the kids. Through this experience I have been able to gain insight into myself and the world. The shelter was extremely effective in breaking down stereotypes and uniting people who normally would not know each other. I will definitely remember some of the people I met through this service placement. I hope that Meagan and I will continue to be able to visit once a week after campus kitchens and perhaps a few of us will be able to provide childcare on a regular basis. I was sad to discover that Bob, one of my favorites, has to move out of the shelter. By the time we get back from break he will have already left. It made me realize how much of a difference people can make in your life. I know that I will carry what I learned through my service placement for the remainder of my life. I am so grateful that I was given the opportunity to take part in the Life Skills Class and I am so happy that it was my number one choice of a service placement.

Today Kellyann and I kept on our grind at the senior center. We are building relationships with many of the elderly and hope to continue building on those relationships as the year goes by. Kellyann and I continue to serve the meals. This time we made extra soups containers for the elderly to take. Then we sat down and talked with the elderly, Donna, in specific about life and her Christmas plans. We then played a quick game of cards before the bus came and we left. Kellyann and I will be going next week to the senior center on Wednesday for Bingo, which we are very excited about. We both talk about the relationships we are gaining and are both very happy about our choice to volunteer together at the Senior Center. She a dime! ;)

Wednesday was the last Big Brothers Big Sisters of the semester. It was great to just spend time with my little. We really got to bond. We made 4 different crafts and ate lots of snacks! I was very upset to see that some of the bigs did not make it for the last week. One of the little was in tears that their big wasn't there. We mean a lot to these kids, and I can see that. Maya is opening up more and more each week, as I tell her more about me. I cannot wait to be able to catch up with her in January. I hope that she is okay without my weekly visit. She seems to really enjoy the one on one time. She is always so happy and I know that she is a lonely little girl and I feel like one of her friends. My experience with Big Brothers Big Sisters thus far has been life changing. I will most definitely continue to do the program over the next 4 years. The one on one interaction is great for them, and I get to take a break from being on campus. At the end of the session I gave my little her present. I got her a stocking and filled it with candy. She was overjoyed I could tell she really appreciated it. I also made her a card wishing her a Merry Chrismas. I was so glad she liked the gift. I was sad to say goodbye but I know I'll see her so soon! Jennifer Beggan

Blog Week #10: This week was our last week at the soup kitchen. I’m sad that we have to leave, but hopefully I can keep volunteering next semester or next year. I realized today that I’ve become close to a lot of different people at the kitchen after only a couple weeks. I think I’ve became the closest with Mrs. Dot, another volunteer at the kitchen as well as Ray, a guest at the kitchen. This whole experience has been eye-opening for me. I believe the most emotional days at the kitchen was the first day and the last day, with many realizations and understandings in between. We’ve learned so much in class about the homeless through novels, films, and conversation, but everything becomes so real once you come into contact with reality. The Gettysburg Community Soup Kitchen has provided me with many insights and it has helped me become extremely sympathetic, understanding, and accepting of these people and people in general. In specific, today I learned a couple of things. Three ladies from a local bank around Gettysburg volunteered at the soup kitchen today. They were all incredibly nice women, but I noticed something that I found to be very odd. This one lady was asking one of the guests what he wanted to eat, but she was talking to him like he was a child. It was clear that this man was older than her maybe around 50 or 60 and the woman was around 30 or 40 years old. The only reason why she was talking down to him was because of the conditions he lived in. I was really taken back by this because no one should ever talk down to anyone else, no matter who they are. Homelessness doesn’t define a person, so why should this one aspect of someone’s life determine how they are treated by others? It shouldn’t. This woman, in my mind, did the completely wrong thing. Servers, social workers, or any volunteer (even paid worker!) should never talk down to the served. They want to be treated just like anyone else in the world, with dignity and respect. Another thing I noticed today was that these ladies were dressed very nicely to be working in the kitchen. They might have come from work or something of that matter, but in general, you shouldn’t be flashing around your new Pandora bracelet at a soup kitchen. The people who you are serving don’t have much of anything at all. An expensive bracelet (and yes, Pandora bracelets are awfully expensive!), should be your last concern when you’re in a soup kitchen helping others in need. The doors should not be a divider between the fortunate and the unfortunate. Everyone should be treated equally. One more thing. Today we had an enormous amount of food; more than we’ve ever had in the kitchen. I’m guessing this was because the holiday season in approaching and people tend to feel more generous. BUT WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF THE YEAR? People don’t become more in-need when the holiday season comes around. The feeling of generosity and giving should be in the hearts of people every season, not just one. All in all, my time at the Gettysburg Community Soup Kitchen has been a remarkable, life-changing experience. I’m so happy I was placed in this volunteer opportunity. I’ve learned so much about the homeless, about their lifestyle, and about the struggles they face every single day. I’m looking forward to volunteering there in the near future and building even more friendships along the way.

Tonight was our last lifeskills class at the shelter, which was bittersweet. I'm glad to be finished thinking of different lessons of what we can teach each week. But, I'm also sad about our departure because I'm going to miss three of the residents and their humor. For our last week, we had someone from career development come and talk about resume writing, cover letters, and interviews. This went surprisingly well because not only did people ask questions, but they were providing each other with different pieces of advice that they had previously experienced. Unfortunately, the kids playroom was closed because santa was storing his gifts there, so the kids were a little noisy and distracting, but the adults managed to stay focused. As usual, we stayed and talked to a few of the residents after the class had ended and then we wished them well and left. Although this experience seemed to be very stressful and frustrating at times during the beginning, by the end, it has definitely proved to be a positive experience.

It was sadly our last week at the kitchen, and it was one of the worst I've had. On tuesday, there was no one at CPS when I went to pick up the key, and then I walked over to the kitchen to see if someone was there or it was open, but it was not, then I walked back to cps, but no one ever came during the time i was there, which lead to a waste of food so I felt really bad. On to wednesday night, I was just struggling and having a spacy day, plus there was actually 8 useless volunteers. Where did they all come from??? I don't like them, they are very bad at what they do, and I like shannon a lot more. I did the baskets and helped with a turkey we were making. It took much longer then it should because of the incompetent volunteers. But I will definitely go back for next semester so it won't be too long before I am back at the kitchen. I bid it farewell, but i will be back soon to rock that shit. It has been a truly wonderful semester, and i have learned so much from Kristy and beardman and shannon, it was honestly a great service experience

This past week at the Senior Center Cory and I had some new experiences, specifically during lunchtime. When we got to the center, we were happily greeted by Bob- who we noticed opens the door for every guest that comes in during our hour stay. We proceeded to the kitchen where we put soup into to-go containers for the seniors to take home, which we passed out during lunchtime. This soup was a big hit and the seniors were especially gracious we put to-go containers together for them. Since the seniors tend to be forgetful, we had to constantly remind them to be careful of loose top. Thank goodness there were no spills! This week, we saw our usual friends. However, what set this time apart from our other visits was, rather than Cory and I asking to join the seniors, it was them asking us. For example, Donna invited us to sit with her during lunch. It has been nice getting to know a little bit more about her life each week, such as her holiday plans and relationships within her family. Afterwards, Bob asked us if we had time to play Rummy with him. Although there was nothing overly special that occurred this week, as I left the senior center I felt like my presence at the center has been appreciated by the seniors as well as Jenn and Jeany (the women who run the center). When reflecting upon this past semester, I feel I am starting to reach one of my college goals of making a difference in someone else’s life. I am excited to go to the senior center next week where Cory and I will be helping out with bingo!

After not having tutoring last week I was glad to get back Monday! This was my last week of tutoring for the semester! It's sad that it's over and I am definitely going to do it again next semester. This week was probably one of the best so far though! I got one student and he had biology homework that I knew how to do! he was doing genetics and heredity but was having a hard time grasping the concepts of it. After working with him he started to understand it better and could do problems on his own! He was very appreciative for the help and I was glad that I finally got a kid who needed help and would work the entire session!! It was great to see him understand and help him look over the test he got back, which he actually new more of than he thought :) Can't wait for next semester, I can't believe this one is gone already!!!