Last week, for our first volunteer project, we met at The Bridge Project whose mission is to provide educational opportunities for children living in Denver's public housing neighborhoods so they graduate from high school and attend college or learn a trade. We toured their Westwood site on Irving street, close to Federal and Mississippi, and then played board games with some of the middle-school aged kids. The reflection questions we gave out at the end of the session were:
What issues does Bridge Project work directly with?
What are the larger issues that cause the need for Bridge Project to exist?
What surprised you today?
What is one question you left today's service with?
One issue that Bridge Project deals with, and continues to surprise me, is the issue of access to education. Most middle to upper class people don't even think about education: they typically grow up with access to decent education and the expectation that they will graduate from college. The amazing fact is less than 30% of the entire U.S. population has a college degree, and as Debbie stated from the Bridge Project, 90% of kids who live in housing projects don't even complete high school. Playing games with the kids that night definitely did not guarantee their graduation from high school, but it helped us see the true picture of youth and education and what one organization is doing to help kids succeed who need it the most. It is also encouraging to see the effect mentors have on those kids, and that something as simple as playing games with a kid on a consistent basis can help ensure a better future.
This week, for our second volunteer project, we met at Warren Village, which exists so that low-income, single parent families achieve sustainable personal and economic self-sufficiency. After a brief orientation about the organization, we then played with kids from infants to 10 year-olds while their mom or dad took a life-skills class, part of the requirement for the parent to live at Warren Village. Volunteers are needed every night, Monday-Thursday, to provide child-care so that the parents can attend these classes, which, in turn, gives them the skills and tools they need to become better parents, find better jobs, and become successful and self-sufficient to provide a better future for themselves and their children. Like The Bridge Project, it is difficult to see the impact a volunteer has in one night, but in the larger picture, we were able to see how another organization helps provide a better future for struggling families and children in Denver. The reflection questions for this project are:
What similarities/differences did you notice between Warren Village and The Bridge Project?
How does the mission of Warren Village help with sustainable community development?
What was your interaction with the kids like? What kind of impact do you think your interaction had? What kind of impact did it have on you?
Please post your thoughts and ideas regarding your experiences volunteering as well as the larger issues addressed by these organizations! For more information about the two organizations, you can visit their websites at www.du.edu/bridgeproject and www.warrenvillage.org
Looking forward to next week when we volunteer at The Spot, and learn more about teen homelessness in Denver.
With love, your co-Team Leader,
Carrie
I was taught that the world had a lot of problems; that I could struggle and change them; that intellectual and material gifts brought the privilege and responsibility of sharing with others less fortunate; and that service is the rent each of us pays for living, the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time or after you have reached your personal goals.
Marian Wright Edelman
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3 comments:
Fine, I'll break the silence....
Here's the first part of the blog.
Bridge Project:
1. What issues does Bridge Project work directly with?
Residents of public housing neighborhoods, by providing educational opportunities to both children and adults.
2. What are the larger issues that cause the need for Bridge Project to exist?
Economic challenged communities that are the results of failed government policies.
3. What surprised you today?
One of the kids that were in my group, Eban, seems quite bright. He stayed focus throughout the game of Monopoly. Though he had the least amount of “cash on hand” when we concluded the game, he had a clear understanding of the concept of Monopoly.
4. What is one question you left today's service with?
What type of resources are children living in public housing lacking other than $?
Warren Village was my first volunteer effort, and if I would sum it up, it would be "tired but happy". I was gratified that I could make a contribution to the kids and WV.
In terms of my personal experience, my interaction with the kids [all boys, for the most part] was definitely spirited! :-)
We moved from one room, where we played some board games, to the special room for active kids, and that room was really needed. The kids were on GO from the gitgo.
I at times found myself wrapped up in a parachute, throwing balls back and forth [sometimes they threw a little too hard], or separating kids who got a bit too forceful with each other. But hey, it was kids beings kids, and it was all good.
As to impacts, since it was a one-time thing, it's hard to gauge, but I hope I made a positive impact. I know I enjoyed being with the children, and I have a new-found respect for those who volunteer there on a regular basis. They give of themselves to help children who just want attention and respect and love.... very simple, really.
For the bigger picture with WV, several things come to mind. I think more and more varied games [board games]would be a good thing. I also think WV, more than anything else gives people HOPE. It responds to the needs of low-income single parent families, with special emphasis on education for parent and child. Hope, economic stability, a stable base for the children to grow up in, a stable launching pad for their own lives.
Questions about the big picture come to mind also:
1. What kind of impact will the apparent downturn in the economy have on the ability of WV to deliver its services to its clients?
2. As they grow up, do the kids move out of the community or neighborhood they grew up in, or do they stay and contribute to that community?
I don't know the answers myself, but would be interested to hear comments from others.
All in all, a powerful experience for me, and I look forward to The Spot.
~~ Hal
I enjoyed spending time with the younger children at Warren Village. One of them was especially polite and helpful. I am glad a place like Warren Village for many reasons, but one of the big reasons is that it provides stability for children who need it so much.
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